


MEMORIES OF THE EXILED PRINCE [A Henry Story 2]

by RinSolo



Series: [TUC] A Henry Story [2]
Category: The Underland Chronicles - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And another problem to tackle because losing eyes isn't fun, Brotherly Bonding, Canon-Typical Violence, Flier OC, Gen, Gnawer OC, Gregor the Overlander - Freeform, He'll pull through again, He's got much to live for now, Henry's a survivor, Henry's story continues, His new bond will help too, Much adventure and fun but also death, OC & Henry bonding again because reasons, Sequel, Slight Gore that's why T-rated, Survival, Underland Chronicles - Canon Divergence, just you wait and see
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-02-19 12:02:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 26
Words: 141,836
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22777426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RinSolo/pseuds/RinSolo
Summary: [UNDER MAJOR EDITING; PROGRESS PART 1/3]This is a story of despair, triumph, loss, and gain.A story of friendship, devotion, and hardships - some overcome, some never defeated.A story of survival.***Over the last six months, you have followed our outcast-in-the-making Henry on his journey to tackle all challenges of survival in the Dead Land. Yes, he’s clawed his way up from the rock bottom he found himself in after the fall – yet what will he do now that life’s thrown him down another?Witness Henry as he breaks the confinements of his comfort zone in the everlasting pursuit of self-sufficiency and strength.He has come so far – but when he foolishly gambles with a bond more fragile than it seemed he must learn its true value before it is too late. Yet fate is a cruel mistress and if we do not take care, our past will catch up to define our future.Everyone can be broken, all that is needed is a breaking point.Strap yourself in to follow who has once been Henry of Regalia as his quest continues – to learn his hardest lessons yet, and to witness whether he is truly bound to rise – or bound to fall.And what a quest it will be.***Please enjoy!
Relationships: Gregor Campbell/Luxa, Henry & Original Character (Underland Chronicles), Luxa & Henry
Series: [TUC] A Henry Story [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1630933
Comments: 15
Kudos: 3





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> ATTENTION!  
> This is a sequel to "MEMORIES OF THE FALLEN PRINCE" and the second book in my "A Henry Story" trilogy. Please read book 1 before delving into this one, it will make little sense otherwise!
> 
> ***
> 
> A COUPLE DISCLAIMERS:
> 
> \- The events described in this work will attempt to use the canon universe as well as possible. The fantasy-element will be exploited in a manner that coincides with canon, even though I reserve the right to add/expand on/tweak fantasy-elements and lore.
> 
> \- This work represents and takes place in an alternative universe to the canon series, but, if not specifically pointed out or described, the reader is to assume events occur as in the canon books. I only reserve the right to elaborate/explain non-confirmed things.  
> The most important differences, between the alternate universe this story takes place in and canon, are the following:  
> x Both Gregor and Luxa have been aged up from 11 to 12 by the time of their first appearances, Hazard has been aged up to 7 by the time of his first appearance, all other ages remain the same  
> x The time passed between “Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods” and “Gregor and the Marks of Secret” has been increased to 18 months (from the original 6 months), so the total time passed between the beginning of “Gregor the Overlander” and the ending of “Gregor and the Code of Claw” changes to approximately 2 years  
> x Henry lives – obviously, that one is the entire premise of the story.
> 
> \- This work is not meant to replace the original series. It is, instead, meant to be read and experienced parallel to the canon books, and understood as an add-on.
> 
> \- Proceed with caution if you have a phobia of heights, the darkness, or blood. Further content warnings include moderately graphic gore and depictions of mental health conditions such as PTSD, depression, and panic attacks. Consider it PG-13.
> 
> \- Please keep an eye out for easter eggs and not-so-obvious references to the canon books! They are scattered throughout and some are fairly well-hidden.
> 
> ***
> 
> This is the cover image I drew for this story:  
> http://fav.me/ddqmv6g

A thick layer of dust hung in the air, stirred up by countless claws, yet beneath that, a pungent reek of blood, of death, allowed not to forget the recently fought battle. The recently... lost battle.

Yet the stench of blood was not the scent he followed. Longclaw watched not for the ground beneath his feet, nor for the writhing, dying shapes of the gnawers he had fought with, most of which remained motionless as he carelessly left them behind in his pursuit of the scent, the scent...

Longclaw stopped only when he realized the scent seemed to lead away from the battlefield. His eyes narrowed at the shape of a coiled tunnel. What could have driven him to...?

Then again – the enormous talons of his front paws audibly scraped the stone floor as he darted forward – what did it matter what had driven him down this way? His last doubt faded as the scent grew stronger, fresher, with every yard he left behind. Soon the tunnel widened, Longclaw estimated it must be at least twenty feet wide when he first heard the voice.

“I’ll not let you escape, you filth! You killed mother, I saw it! You killed her!”

Longclaw clenched his jaw until his teeth gnashed against each other, his claws produced an unnerving screech as he darted around a corner into an even larger open space.

His eyes narrowed and he nearly ran into a wall as he found himself blinded by a bright light. Then a high-pitched cry vibrated his ears. The ground swayed beneath his feet and as his eyes locked onto the light brown body of – “Ashpaw NO!”

He registered the glistening of blood on stone, on the blade of a sword, that darted out of reach instantly. Did he see him? Ashpaw’s gaze was directed at Longclaw, yet when he tried to call out, all he produced was a strained gurgling noise. The sound of blood dripping from his mouth rang so loud in Longclaw’s ears he winced, then watched the lifeless body of his son fall at his feet.

He had no sense for how much time had passed when he at last moved, staggered backward to no longer stand in the puddle of blood that had formed around Ashpaw. Had it been seconds? Minutes? Hours? Years?

 _I’ll show you how strong I’ve become, father!_ He should have never allowed it, never... _Don’t worry! You think a stupid human’s going to kill me? Hah! I’ll swat the high and mighty on their fliers from the air like mites!_

Longclaw had stared at his talons for seconds before registering they glistened red from blood. His gaze followed the trail of bloody footsteps he had left after moving backward – the blood of his son.

“Hey! What’s the matter? Someone’s got your tongue?”

Longclaw’s head darted up as a voice called from above. “Or will you surrender here and now, as you should?”

All he registered was that she held up a torch in one, and a sword in the other hand. A sword that glistened with red. Like to taunt him, she waved it in the air as her flier circled above his head. “Come and catch me!”, she cried, “Come and share your friend’s fate!”

It was like a wire in Longclaw’s head snapped. He tore his mouth open to voice a grotesque roar and leaped at the girl, to do as Ashpaw had promised, to swat her from the air like a mite, yet her flier narrowly dodged, performing an air roll and darted into a tunnel opening leading away from the cave. “Come and catch me!”, she yelled again, her voice echoed from the walls, sounding ten times louder in Longclaw’s head.

He allowed the searing rage to take him over, every inch of his body burned with it as he dashed after her down the tunnel. Images of Ashpaw’s eyes, filled to the brim with fear as he had understood he would die, swarmed his mind and he longed for nothing more than for his killer to gaze at him with the same expression.

His eyes were on the flier as he darted out into a grand cave and gained altitude. Simultaneously Longclaw realized he was nearing a steep cliff. The ground gave way to form a large canyon and the other side was some twenty feet away. Yet instead of slowing, he picked up speed.

The killer would not escape so easily.

As the flier darted over the edge Longclaw hesitated not for a moment – his talons scraped the edge as he leaped further than he had ever leaped, stretching his claws to dig them into the flier’s leg.

Got you, he thought, yet when he came into reach the flier twisted himself upward and the girl lashed at his face with her torch. A howling screech escaped Longclaw’s throat as he lost balance and plummeted downward. He caught a last glimpse at her spiteful face before spinning around in the air to break his fall.

Is it me now, who has fear of death in his eyes – Longclaw managed to think as the ground zoomed in on him relentlessly. A violent jolt of pain permeated his body and blackness engulfed him when he then hit it.

Longclaw could not tell for how long he had lied unconscious, yet as he could exercise so much control over his eyes he managed to focus them again, he saw above himself the same flier with the same girl on his back, mockingly waving her sword again.

“Oh look, he still lives!”, she yelled and laughed, the sound stirred his insides like they were crawling with pestering insects. Longclaw barely registered her flier landed on the edge of the canyon, to stare down at him and flap his wings tauntingly.

“How nobody has made fun of that face of yours yet eludes me”, Longclaw coughed out as he slowly picked himself up from the ground and narrowed his eyes at the flier. “Or have they?”

“Shut your trap, will you?”, the girl yelled and dismounted, then pointed her sword downward, as if she could even remotely reach him, from her elevated position.

“What do they call you, hm? Is it Skullface?” Longclaw continued mocking and disregarded his aching body, scrambling to the wall that bordered the canyon. “The Skullface and the Loudmouth!”, he cried, scraping the wall with all his strength. To his satisfaction, they both winced.

“The great Longclaw caught in a mouse trap”, the girl shook her head and her grin widened. “Is petty insults all you have left? Gorger’s greatest general, they called you! Even Gorger’s elected successor, you called yourself! Ha!” She kicked a few loose pebbles down and Longclaw squinted angrily as they hit his face. “Looks like that dream’s over before it’s begun!”

He voiced a livid shriek and cowered down to leap at them, yet the canyon was nearly thirty feet high, he could barely jump half of it. His claws found no footing on the steep wall and he fell back down, unable to suppress a scream of pain.

“Look at him!”, she laughed and turned to her flier, “shall we finish him off swiftly?”

Longclaw narrowed his eyes, attempting to suppress the uprising panic. The canyon was only as long as the cave, and there was nowhere to climb up for him, especially in his weakened state. Nowhere to... escape.

“How about we don’t?”

His head darted upward again as a different voice spoke. The flier spread his wings and lifted off, performing a circle above his head.

“What’s he going to do? FLY out of there?” He landed beside the girl again and shook his head. “Come, Arya, let us check back on him in a couple weeks. If he is not dead by then, we can soil ourselves with his blood. It’s hardly worth the effort now.”

The girl tilted her head so that her curls fell in her face and finally sheathed her sword. “You know what, you’re right!” She mounted up and laughed. “It will be a much more appropriate death for someone who always thought himself so high and mighty. Is it true what they say? That you keep an exact count of how many of us you’ve slaughtered?”

Longclaw audibly cursed and leaped up again, yet his weakened body gave way and he collapsed as he fell back to the floor. He could do nothing but sit and watch as the flier with the strange skull face and the girl named Arya on his back performed a last round above his head and then darted into the tunnel they had come from.

Searing rage engulfed Longclaw as he found himself alone in the dark canyon. He let out a bone-rattling scream and ran into the wall with all his might, driving his claws into the stone over and over.

It was not over, he grimly thought, disregarding the pain that jolted through his front paws. His list they were interested in? Longclaw let out a low growl. Two hundred and four, it counted. And before this was over, it would count two hundred and six.


	2. Limit

* * *

Once around, then up the mountain, five shots at the target – Henry clenched his teeth, deciding he’d stay up all night firing stone after stone were he to miss them all again – down the mountain, and the final loop.

The fingers of his left hand mindlessly fumbled at the weight he’d tied to his right arm until it clanked against the one on his left. He wouldn’t miss them all again. Not this time. This time he would break his record.

Henry closed his eye and took a deep breath, falling into position and preparing to run, before angrily shaking his head to get the strands of loose hair that were too short to tie out of his face. His fists clenched around the strings of the weights, his eye flung open, and he fixated on the suspended stone bowl to his left.

Henry narrowed his eye one last time, then his hand shot up to pull the string connected to the plug sealing the hole in the middle. It gave way and Henry waited not for the gush of sand that instantly shot out, he darted forward together with it.

The exiled prince sprinted like a hundred rats were chasing behind. He blocked out the sand crunching beneath his bare feet, the calming of waves breaking on the beach, all he perceived was his own much too loud breathing as he ran along the coastline around the island.

When his stopwatch came into view again he bothered not to check it, he instead took such a sharp turn the sand sprayed to all sides under his foot, but he ignored it as well. Henry clenched his grip around the weights tighter and darted towards the mountain, the spot where he’d stuck a mark into the sand.

Henry picked up even more speed as he approached the steep wall and leaped as high as he could, grabbing onto a narrow ledge, some eight feet up. The bandages he’d applied protected his hands from the sharp rocks as he pulled himself up, fighting the weights that made his arms heavy as lead. Henry squinted when a sting at last shot through the right side of his face, yet it was nowhere near as severe as it had used to be.

His teeth clenched as he got a hold of the wall further up and he shoved all pain and discomfort aside to focus on climbing. Records weren’t broken by whining.

He knew not how much time had passed when he pulled himself over the final hurdle to scramble to his feet on the narrow plateau as close to the top of the mountain as you could get. All he knew was it had been too much time.

He darted to where he’d left the slingshot so fast he nearly lost balance and missed it by a mile, before angrily gathering it up and loading it. The torch he’d placed here earlier quietly crackled, illuminating his target – a sloppily drawn white circle on nigh black stone.

Henry narrowed his eye and stabilized his hand. The gravel beneath dug into his feet but he disregarded it and focused, then raised the slingshot.

Miss. Miss again. Henry released an exasperated groan and cursed before raising the sling again, desperately fixating the circle. The next stone struck the line, smudging the chalk a little. Henry let out a suppressed scream of joy, then reprehended himself – what was he so happy about? It had not even been a real hit.

Miss again. His teeth clenched so hard it hurt and he angrily wiped at his eye to not even give the uprising tears a chance.

Henry’s last stone hit the circle, though more on the side. Two out of five, that wasn’t bad overall, the exiled prince squinted in discomfort as he stuffed the sling into his belt. He tried not to think of how the circle was nearly a foot in diameter and how he’d hit a mere dot flawlessly before, instead he kneeled to extinguish the torch and began making his way down.

The first twenty or so feet were extremely steep, more than once Henry found himself dangling from a ledge, holding on with a single hand, but he had no fear. Heights didn’t scare him anymore, not like they had after the fall. Not when Thanatos was nearby, anyway.

As the thought crossed his mind Henry narrowed his eye at the quiet, glistening sea – where was the flier, actually? He hadn’t seen him since they’d eaten lunch and now was almost dinner time. Why wasn’t he here? Who would catch him if he fell now?

In the next moment, Henry turned his focus back on the wall and shook his head. Fall. Who cared where the flier was, it did not matter because he wouldn’t fall. He wouldn’t fall so he needed nobody to catch him. Period.

The exiled prince frustratedly chased the thoughts from his mind and clenched his fist around the stone, focusing all his attention on climbing. Ledge by ledge, foot by foot, he descended down. A few minutes later the ground came into reach and Henry leaped the last ten or so feet, rolling off and scrambling up, not even regarding his stopwatch. Home stretch.

Once more, without bothering to stop and catch his breath, Henry began running. The difference to the first lap around the island became apparent instantly, his lungs burned and his limbs felt like they were made from lead. The weights relentlessly pulled at him and Henry shook his head in anger to chase the fatigue. “Weak”, he hissed through clenched teeth and gathered his last energy reserves to pick up speed.

As soon as his stopwatch came into view he zoomed in on it, sand began flying from under his feet and he nearly ran it over, unable to stop in time. He barely reached his hand up from where he had collapsed to close up the hole, before sealing it properly with the plug.

I have to look, he thought as he lied on the floor, combatting his own stinging lungs and fiddling with the ties of the weights. Both came off eventually and Henry slouched forward, cheek pressed into the cool sand, panting from exertion. But he had to look at the time.

“You’re going to kill yourself at some point if you keep pushing this hard for much longer.”

Henry did not even flinch as the voice sounded on his right. He felt like his body would split apart would he move a single muscle now.

“I mean it. Why even are you doing this to yourself, what are you gaining from –”

“Shut up”, he hissed between gritted teeth and pulled himself up. “I can do what I want. If I’m stuck here anyway, I can at least give myself the impression of success, can’t I?” Only as he turned his head he spotted Thanatos, in the same moment a dead fish hit his leg. “Is it dinner time already?”

“Yeah – wait, have you been exercising all the time I was gone?”

Henry groaned as he slowly rose to finally check his time. “It’s not like I had anything better to do.” As he peered over the edge of the bowl he made a face. “What? Nearly all gone? I thought I was getting BETTER!” He smacked his hand against it in anger and the bowl began swaying back and forth where it was suspended.

“Don’t you use less and less sand for that almost every time?”

Resigned, Henry plopped back down and reached for his backpack he’d left on the other side of the bowl. “Because I’m SUPPOSED to get BETTER!”

The flier silently watched as Henry slipped back into his shirt and set up a fireplace to cook dinner. Only when two of the four fish he had caught quietly sizzled on the grill he raised his voice again.

“How... how is this helping you, Henry?”

The exiled prince froze in the middle of poking one of the fish with a bone. “It’s exercise. How is it NOT helping?” It wasn’t helping. He squinted before admitting it in front of himself, at least. Not with the real issue.

It was helping to make him feel better, if anything. He barely recalled their first couple weeks here, he’d been in nigh-constant pain, unable to even get up for longer periods of time. It had driven him insane to be bedridden for so long, and ever since he’d felt strong enough he’d immediately picked up a workout routine that involved various exercises he remembered from training back in Regalia. Sit-ups, push-ups, stretching, and gymnastics every morning and evening, and this little parkour he’d set up for himself, whenever he felt like it in between.

Thanatos had claimed it was bad for him to exert himself physically after such an injury, but it wasn’t like he had a way to stop Henry regardless. And working out at least gave him the illusion of improving his condition, the exiled prince thought.

Sure, his injury had healed, it hadn’t really hurt in weeks, and his physical shape had enhanced significantly, but his shape had never been the issue. Not the real issue.

His gaze darted to where the entrance to their camp cave lied, and his tally. He vividly remembered day 20 when he’d ran out of space below and had to continue above. Then he remembered day 45 when he’d ran out of space on the right side and had to continue left. Sixty. Henry sighed and thought about tomorrow morning when he would be compelled to draw the... sixtieth mark.

“This... this is going to end in a debate about how long we’re supposed to stay here, right?”

Henry’s gaze met the flier again and he bit his lip before taking his first bite from one of the fish. Of course it would. Nearly all their conversations in recent times somehow ended in that.

“I don’t understand why you’re even so reluctant to leave”, Henry sighed and cried as he accidentally touched the grill in the process of removing the second fish. “Your wing has healed ages ago, and –” He interrupted himself and lowered the hand he’d raised to cup the spot where his right eye had once been. “This is as good as it gets either.”

“I am reluctant to leave”, Thanatos inched forward until he lied beside Henry, “because you will be killed by the first enemy you encounter, out there. This island is...”, he hesitated, “well, it gets old quickly, but it is safe.”

Henry furrowed his brows and dug his fist into the sand. “Well, I’m TRYING, okay? It’s not like I can CHANGE that!”

Killed by the first enemy you encounter, it rang in his mind, and Henry suppressed the urge to cover his ears with his hands and scream. Pictures of Goldfang’s corpse flashed before his inner eye, pictures of a cave full of ferocious wasps, a Tankard overflowing with enraged serpents.

“I once won a single-handed battle against a former general of Gorger’s”, he mumbled, staring at the sword he’d leaned on the wall beside the entrance to their cave with disdain.

Thanatos sighed. “I... I know. But losing an eye is serious business, you can’t just rush back into action, as unprepared as you are.”

“That’s NOT THE POINT!” Henry angrily tossed sand into the flame that hissed and sizzled. “The point is”, he sprung to his feet, “that it’s not going to GET BETTER!”

Henry had no idea how far he’d run before he collapsed in ankle-deep water. The waves gently ebbed up and down though could not soothe his raging insides. Sixty days he’d pined away on this chunk of dirt – and what had changed? Henry narrowed his eye at the water and felt the seething urge to claw it out as well, at least he wouldn’t have to look at the pathetic pile of misery he’d become anymore, then.

He’d find a solution – the memory of his own words had Henry feel like crying and laughing at once. A... solution. What SOLUTION? His hand rose to cup the right side of his face. There was no solution.

The sensation of scarred flesh was still unfamiliar, the tissue was sensitive, but it had healed well. Then again, perhaps it would have been better hadn’t it healed at all.

“What... are you doing?”

Henry didn’t look up as he heard Thanatos’ voice behind him. “Leave me”, he mumbled, desperately trying to suppress the tears. This was how it had gone for several weeks now. He would wait for Thanatos to go to sleep and then he would cry, only to feel so disgusted with himself afterward he found it hard to fall asleep at all.

The flier was indeed silent for so long Henry had nearly forgotten he was there. “You... don’t want to spend the rest of your life here, I get that”, he finally spoke on. “But I urge you to be reasonable.”

Henry remained silent, only pressed his lips together even harder.

“Remember we once spoke of living with and without reason?”

“Yeah, except you don’t LET me search!”, the exiled prince cried and fell backward to lie in the shallow water. It gently swept around the outskirts of his hair and he tightly shut his eye.

“That is not true.”

As Henry opened his eye back up, Thanatos’ white face hovered above him. “Searching doesn’t always equal being out there in danger. Searching means you spend a portion of your life preparing for what’s to come. What have you even done so far, in trying to better your fighting skills?”

Henry averted his gaze. He’d done... what was possible, he angrily thought, while knowing perfectly well his attempts, which had mostly consisted of occasional slingshot practice, had been lackluster, to say the least. “I... what CAN I even do?”, he at last exclaimed, half-heartedly beating the waves with his hand.

“There is always something”, the flier sighed, “it was you who announced you’d find a solution, was it not?”

“Can you stop that?!”, Henry angrily hissed and turned, only to rise and curse after spitting out the wet sand that had ended up in his mouth. All the flier had ever done was reinforce his own flaws, not a single word of encouragement he had uttered, only gone on and on about what and how Henry could be doing things better. Was this really what bonds did? “I feel shitty enough, okay?!”

Thanatos winced a little. “Stop... what? I... I am trying to help!”

“Well, you suck at it!” Henry shook his head angrily until sand flew from it in all directions. For a moment they were both silent, then the exiled prince sighed. “Alright. What... what’s your oh-so-great suggestion?”

Thanatos was staring at the floor, then defiantly raised his gaze again. “My oh-so-great suggestion is, that you stop viewing this issue emotionally. You’ve been beating yourself up over it for months now, and it is only making you feel worse. Instead of running that parkour day and night, how about you attempt seriously practicing combat?”

Henry bit his lip, but the flier continued – “Henry, this “solution” is not going to fall from the sky. You don’t get anything for free in life, or at least, not anymore. Maybe it’s time you learn to work for your gains.”

Henry snorted, “Like I’ve not been working so far”, but the flier shook his head. “I know you hate this island. I know you hate being trapped here, and I know you feel like you’re good for nothing again. But I also know the Henry I’ve gotten to know never once allowed life to beat him down. The Henry I’ve taken in, and fought, and... and been a team with for so long will not stay down, not until the world has drained every ounce of life from his body, am I not right?”

“What about the Henry you bonded to?” For the first time, the exiled prince raised his gaze to look at the flier who fixated the floor. A jolt of uncertainty hit him, and he asked himself why he had left that one out, out of all of them.

“That is... is what I meant. Team, bond, are they not the same in our case?” Henry only furrowed his brows. “Not really, no. But that’s not the point right now.” It’s never been the point for you, he thought. He didn’t bother counting the times the flier had seemingly purposely forgotten that very detail anymore. All he failed to see was... why.

It is not like it changes much... it is the same anyway... Henry dug his hand into the wet sand beneath and asked himself the same questions for the hundredth time – was it just he to whom it had actually meant something?

“Right. I guess what I was getting at is that you need to begin working towards getting out of this rock bottom again. Your life isn’t over, you know?”, he tilted his head and the gaze in his amber eyes was sympathetic. “Don’t keep treating it like it is.”

Henry only let out a sigh. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing, it flashed in his mind, and he squinted in shame. Getting up in the morning only to exercise, or when Thanatos tossed him out of his sheets, as he did more often than not, in recent times. Spending his day on pointless meddling. Going back to sleep.

“Have you ever considered learning to fight without your eyes altogether?”

Henry nearly broke into laughter at Thanatos’ words.

“I’m serious”, he urged. “I’ve heard of this one man who had lost his eyesight as a child due to some illness and later became a quite skilled warrior. Not anything comparable to those with eyesight, but he could fend for himself using his hearing only, at least.”

“And how long did it take him to become that good?” Henry asked the most urgent question immediately.

The flier hesitated. “Some... ten years, or something, I believe”, he quietly mumbled. “Could have been more, too.”

“Pah!” Henry sprung up. “If you think I will rot away on this island for the next DECADE I’ve bonded to a fool!” He kicked the water but nearly slipped. “I hate it! I HATE IT! I... I don’t want to...” The exiled prince sobbed when the first tear rolled down his cheek. He furiously wiped it away.

“C... come, will you? Let’s go to sleep. Maybe we can find a solution tomorrow.”

Henry glanced back at Thanatos and thought the flier had not looked this helpless in ages, before reluctantly trotting out of the water and back towards their cave. He knew they wouldn’t find a solution tomorrow, nor anytime soon. Nor ever. The thought burned like hot iron. It was useless to remain on the beach though. Sleep was black and soothing, maybe going to sleep would indeed help. Help forget it all, Henry thought and began shuddering from the cold water.

“Get out of the wet clothes, will you?” Thanatos spread his wings and lifted off, to circle around where Henry had previously lit the campfire. “I’ll be ahead.” With that, he disappeared in the entrance to their cave.

The exiled prince gazed after him with unconcealed jealousy. His wing had healed perfectly well – if you didn’t look too close, you couldn’t even see it had artificial tissue. But Henry’s own injury would never be as before again.

The flier could of course go wherever he pleased, too. Henry angrily heaved sand onto the fire until it died. He could freely fly over the water, even to the mainland if he wanted. The exiled prince froze when he suddenly realized how much time Thanatos had spent out somewhere, in recent times. He recalled hours of prolonged absence, even today he’d been gone what had ended up being half the day. His eye narrowed as he looked back at the cave entrance the flier had disappeared in – what was he doing during that time?

Having fun without me, probably, Henry scoffed as he gathered up his scattered belongings. Being glad he isn’t confined here like me. In the same moment, he reprehended himself, thinking Thanatos wasn’t one to do stuff like that behind his back. He had always relied on the flier’s honesty, and what kind of world was this if he couldn’t trust his own bond anymore?

My bond who’s not ever told me what he has been doing, or even invited me to come along for at least a couple hours of flying. Henry shook his head. There had to be a reasonable explanation, he would probably do best in simply asking.

Or maybe he just wants time away from me, he grimly thought, closing his hand around the hilt of his sword to store it away. If he left his hand hanging limp he could not even see the blade anymore, with his narrowed field of vision.

Time away from... The sword nearly slipped from Henry’s hand as he recalled a conversation between Ares and Aurora he’d overheard a couple months before his exile.

 _I just feel like... some time away from him would do me good sometimes, you know? But am I not overstepping in wishing for something such as this?_ Ares’ words rang clear as light in his head. _We are bonds, after all._ Bonds. They had been... bonds.

Henry narrowed his eye at the dark cave entrance. Even the memory of Ares’ words stung like a knife to the heart – he hadn’t understood at the time, why would his own bond need time away from him? And to this point, he failed to grasp it. Aurora never asked for time away from Luxa either.

Angrily, Henry shook his head. This was ridiculous. He sometimes disappeared for a couple hours – what was the big deal? Yes, it was out of the question Thanatos wasn’t entirely sincere, but it was unfair to instantly assume he did what Ares had wanted, back then. Even comparing Thanatos to Ares was absurd. He and Ares had never been the way he and Thanatos were.

It was a... bond, was it not? This time it was, Henry bit his lip. It was nothing like the half-assed excuse for a friendship that had ended in mutual betrayal he’d shared with Ares. Even thinking something remotely comparable could ever happen to him and Thanatos was absurd. They were... not like that. Even if they did occasionally fight. But who didn’t?

Henry found himself confused as he didn’t recognize the cave he was standing in. It stretched far to his left and right, maybe twenty feet on each side. He carefully took a step forward, attempting to assess where to go, when he made out the shape of Thanatos sitting on his left.

In the back of his head, Henry began to wonder how he could even see the flier. There was no light source in view. He opened his mouth to ask Thanatos when he saw the expression in the flier’s eyes.

Henry froze, only on the side registering his bond’s mouth was moving, like he was speaking, screaming something. Something to match the visceral panic in his gaze.

The exiled prince turned to look for a source of danger when the first gush of water swept him off his feet. Henry screamed, yet there was no sound. He barely had time to ask himself how he had managed to not swallow water when something latched onto him. He smacked into Thanatos as the flier had dug a claw into his arm, they were helplessly dragged along by the stream.

The water wasn’t icy, and crystal-clear. Henry’s hand firmly closed around Thanatos’ claw as the water rose and rose, but when he turned his gaze upward again, Henry tore his mouth open in shock.

This time he did swallow water and fought to breach the surface. As he finally got his head out of the water and coughed up what he had swallowed he unbelievingly stared at the ceiling, maybe a foot above him. It was no ceiling – not really. It consisted of some transparent substance behind which glowed a white, endless void. Was it... glass? Henry squinted, how was there glass here?

He turned his head back down to spot Thanatos, to ask what the flier thought it was when he processed his hand was empty. _Death!_ He attempted to scream, but it was like he had lost the ability to control his vocal cords. His mouth opened and closed, yet did not produce a single sound. _Death!_

Henry’s gaze darted back up as a shadow appeared above him. His hand could now reach the ceiling and he unbelievingly touched the transparent substance, then jerked back from how cold it was. But he had seen correctly – there was a familiar figure on the other side.

_Death?_

The flier sat in front of him on the other side, staring down with an unreadable expression. Irritation rose in Henry as he clenched his fist before disregarding the strange cold and banging it on the ceiling.

_Death!_

The flier remained motionless and Henry’s irritation quickly turned into panic.

_Death! DEATH!_

It became harder and harder to remain on the surface, soon the water would fill the entire cave, and then –

_DEATH!_

Only seconds later Henry was entirely engulfed, an icy chill ran down his spine from the suddenly much colder seeming water. He banged his fists on the ceiling until they hurt, screaming Thanatos’ name over and over, but it was of no use. The flier remained sitting motionless on the other side, not rushing to help, not scratching away at the surface to create an opening, not even going to look for one elsewhere. All his screaming did was cause Henry to swallow more water.

Eventually, the exiled prince ran out of air and his vision blurred. Lights sparked before his eye and he could not even raise his hand to bang it against the ceiling anymore. His body grew limp and even though he was overwhelmed with panic he had no control over his body. All he could do was keep his eye on his bond, his bond who motionlessly watched him drown, as he felt himself being sucked into the black oblivion of unconsciousness.

Every fiber of Henry’s body was overwhelmed with panic, convinced he was on the brink of drowning, as he shot up on his sheet. It was utter darkness around him and it took the exiled prince a couple seconds to understand he had been dreaming.

He still audibly gasped for air, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, only to notice his hand was trembling excessively.

“Henry?” The voice on his right belonged to Thanatos and the exiled prince managed to snap his fingers once, twice, to perceive the flier had dropped from his hanging spot to cower at his side.

“Y... you...” The image from his dream flashed in Henry’s mind, the image of the flier watching him drown, but he angrily chased it. It had been a stupid nightmare. “I... I...” Before he had the strength to finish his sentence he broke into tears.

He sensed Thanatos’ presence at his side and fell forward to wrap his arms around his neck. He had wept into the flier’s fur for maybe a minute before he could muster up enough self-control to dry his tears.

“How many nightmares has it been, only this last week?”

Henry sobbed and shook his head.

“Too many”, the flier spoke on, “yet I can’t say I’m surprised, considering what you’ve been through.”

The exiled prince rose and wiped at his face. “This wasn’t like the others though.” He squinted, forcing himself to remember the chaotic, terrifying pictures that had etched themselves onto his inner eye from the countless nightmares he’d had over the last sixty days. They had varied in grotesqueness and scenery and setting – yet they all had had one thing in common. “This one had nothing to do with my eye.”

He sensed Thanatos raise his gaze. “It did not?”

Henry shook his head and shivered, then retold the dream as best he could. He left out only the part about the flier watching him drown, from the other side of what must have been glass. He thought it would just make things awkward and uncomfortable.

“Well, you nearly drowned that day as well”, Thanatos settled down beside him and Henry soon lied his head on his back and shut his eye. “Still. I... I don’t even really remember that part. I... can I dream about something I don’t remember?”

Thanatos hummed pensively. “I’m not sure, but it hardly matters. It was a dream. You cannot beat yourself up over what it means or where it comes from, alright?”

Henry sniffed and pulled his legs to his chest. “Can you take me with you, next time you go out flying?”

Thanatos was silent for a moment. “Of... of course. I didn’t... I mean, wouldn’t you instantly get bored of aimless flying?”

The exiled prince managed a quiet laugh. “Is that why you never offered? Honestly, I miss it a lot. Just flying, you know? Maybe it’ll help to make me feel less trapped here.”

“I... that’s... that makes sense... I’ll take you next time.” The flier hesitated for a moment, “I... I don’t want you to think I didn’t offer because I didn’t want you around, okay? To tell you the truth, I didn’t think you’d care for something as mundane as a couple rounds over the water, considering how much you whined on our trip over the waterway.”

Henry’s mouth curved into a smile. “That’s fair. Then again, I should have asked sooner. But yeah, I did feel left out. Just a little.”

Thanatos hummed. “We’ll fly together, tomorrow. That sound good?”

“Yeah.”

“Then try to go back to sleep now. It’ll be morning before you know it.”

Henry sniffed again and sighed, then curled up in a tight ball and pressed his face into the flier’s fur. Thanatos was right, it would be morning soon. They would fly together then.

His jaw still clenched as he failed to shake the bitter aftertaste the nightmare had left. It had been... just a dream. A dream he couldn’t beat himself up over. Yet the image of Thanatos on the other side of the glass had etched itself so deep into his mind it haunted him for hours until exertion at last overwhelmed him and he slipped into what ended up being a couple hours of restless, light sleep.

Yet when he woke the next day, Thanatos was already gone. He’d always been getting up earlier than Henry ever since the exiled prince could think, still, he couldn’t help but feel somewhat perturbed, considering the flier’s promise last night.

Just as he’d slipped into his boots to go looking for Thanatos though, the flier came fluttering in through the entrance. “Henry, you have to come. The suppliers are here!”

The exiled prince’s face immediately lit up and he dropped the backpack he’d just taken up. “You don’t say! Oh, do you think they’ll have those fruit from the jungle, the yellow ones?” He instantly stormed past the flier and ran the trek to the other side of the island on foot.

Supplies were just what they needed, with how much fuel he had used recently. Something other than fish for food would be great too, he thought and picked up speed as he spotted the elongated, human-made boat that lied on the beach. An entourage of three moths hovered above the boat that was packed with goods, as it had been the last two times.

Only a week after he and Thanatos had arrived here, he had learned the crawlers on the island had a contract with the flutterers who sustained them, in exchange for services from their kin on the mainland. They brought supplies and news, and had also been informed the famed Wielder of Light had taken camp on the island as well beforehand. It turned out both species revered him so much they had swamped him with goods even without payment every time they had been here so far, and Henry was not about to complain.

Thanatos’ shadow darted over his head at that moment and the flier touched down next to the boat, exchanging greetings with the flutterers. Henry approached as well, eyeing what they had brought. Crates over crates of goods, and after he and Thanatos had helped to unload them, he peeked inside and rejoiced.

Tons of food – grain, dried beef, different types of mushrooms, and yes, even Henry’s beloved yellow fruit from the jungle, among others. Then multiple barrels of fuel and a full crate of medical supplies – stacks of bandages, multiple containers with painkillers and disinfectant as well as a small bottle of antipyretic.

“We’ll have a feast tonight!”, Henry called as he hurled crate after crate over to the base of the mountain, to store them later.

“We will have the supplies to hold one, certainly”, Thanatos responded and despite all they’d talked about yesterday, Henry couldn’t help but approach the leader of the flutterers – “You’re well-informed, right? Do you maybe know someone who could use mercenaries?”

Thanatos’ head instantly shot up and he threw him an accusing glare from where he had just sat down a crate with food, but Henry ignored him. The sight of the boat, the means to get to the mainland, had fueled his desire to leave even more. And besides, the flier was his bond, not his parent – he could not tell him what to do. If I stay here a single day longer I’ll go mad, Henry thought, eyeing the mountain with contempt before turning his attention back on the moth, who visibly hesitated. “Well?”

“Oh, oh no. Nobody thinks of that at the moment. It is not the time now.”

Henry furrowed his brows. “What are you talking about?” From behind he sensed Thanatos approaching, he must have heard the response too.

The flutterer tilted his head, exchanging glances with his party members. “Have you not heard? The Curse of the Warmbloods is upon us. It occupies the minds of everyone. It leaves no time for things that would require mercenaries.”

“The... what now?” Curse of the Warmbloods – Henry furrowed his brows and thought the term sounded faintly familiar, though he had no idea what exactly it was or where he had heard it before. Whatever it was though, it certainly didn’t sound like anything good.

“The Curse of the Warmbloods”, the flutterer repeated, “your people call it – the plague. It came over the Dead Land a few weeks ago. The gnawers die in large numbers. Your kind fights it, though we hear both human cities have been befallen.”

A plague...? Henry’s chest tightened with unease. How had he not heard of it yet – both the Fount and Regalia had been befallen, they said. His mind flashed to everyone he cared about – Luxa, Nerissa, Vikus, Solovet, Mareth... He realized he was digging his heel into the sand anxiously. The list was nigh endless.

Then again – Henry pressed his lips together and eyed Thanatos whose face showed the same emotions as his own – how could he have heard of it? He had spent the last two months on this isolated island among crawlers. And there was hardly any plague here.

“This... this is not good...”, the flier beside him muttered, “Have you by any chance information on whether the nibblers are affected too?”

The nibblers! Henry spun around to the moth, eagerly awaiting a response. He hadn’t even thought about his friends in the jungle – but as much as he feared for his loved ones in Regalia, he had more reason to fear for Teslas, Lovelace, Curie, Cevian, and all the others. They had not nearly the equipment and medical skills the doctors in Regalia had.

“Not that we have heard of. We prefer to stay hidden for as long as it lasts. We are not warmbloods, so it does not affect us, but it is still safer this way”, the flutterer replied, and Henry and Thanatos exchanged glances.

“Looks like we might leave here sooner than anticipated...”, the flier mumbled, visibly unnerved, and even Henry clenched his jaw nervously at the thought of the previously so eagerly anticipated departure. This was not the reason he had wanted to leave for.

“We’ll go check on them, right?” Henry paced up and down in front of the entrance to their cave. “Like, we have to check on them. I don’t care what you say about leaving, this is not about me anymore, it’s –”

“Henry – Henry, yes, of course, we’ll go check on them. Do you hear me protesting?” Thanatos’ voice was gravely serious. “A... a plague... how – what – how did this ever even happen?”

“I don’t care!” Henry took a stance before him. “We’ll leave as many supplies as we can spare in the stash here, and fly for the jungle. Maybe they’ll have more information as well. Though I have to... have to...” He wrung his hands anxiously and stared at the floor. “I just want to see them again. In general, too. The colony is safe enough, is it not?”

“Henry, for the second time, I am not objecting. Let us pack, and then let us leave. If you so want, we can stay there a while as well, if they are not affected. But you are right... there has seldom been a better time to leave than now.”

Henry turned his attention on the supply crates again. “I’ll... I’ll make bread first, okay? To take with us. We can eat and then we can leave, I’m really hungry.” To his own surprise, now that their departure was imminent, the thought of it had seized giving him joy.

Thanatos nodded. “Do what you must. I am hungry as well after we skipped breakfast today.”

It took Henry several hours to finish up baking and the end product was corny and bland for he had no salt but for sandwiches, it would suffice.

Thanatos landed beside him with four fish just as the exiled prince pulled the bread from the stone he used as an oven and prepared to store it in his backpack. “Smells like a success.”

“Hopefully”, Henry grinned and threw some mushrooms in the empty oven. “How about we try it?”

They were both so hungry they finished lunch in only ten minutes and Thanatos had already spread his wings, asking “You ready to leave then?” when Henry remembered something. “I... wait, give me five minutes, okay?”

“Did you forget something?”

Henry ignored the question and made his way back into the cave. He was certain he’d packed all they’d need, even his coat – he wouldn’t need it in the jungle but you never knew for certain where you’d end up.

He went on rummaging through some discarded leather pieces he’d meant to throw away at some point and picked out one that had the approximate right size. With it he stepped back out, to be faced with a confused Thanatos. Instead of asking, this time, the flier simply watched Henry as he pulled out Mys and cut the leather into his desired shape. When he was then satisfied, a few minutes later, he raised and tied it around his head, before turning back to the flier. “Well, how do I look?”

The flier blinked in surprise and tilted his head. “Not... bad. Kind of suits you. Though... I mean, you’ve not worn one so far, why did you feel compelled to make an eyepatch now?”

Henry pressed his lips together as he fumbled with the leather patch. “We’ll see people we know again now, that’s why. You think I’ll let them see me with that abomination on my face? It’ll only make the babies cry.” He ignored Thanatos’ concerned expression and made his way past the flier to look at himself in the water.

His reflection was somewhat blurry, the waterway wasn’t an ideal mirror, but he instantly saw the patch had the effect he’d wanted it to have – while it didn’t cover the scar completely, it made it look much less gruesome. And then – Henry tilted his head and his mouth curved into a smile – there was also how it made him look sort-of unruly and raffish, like a true veteran outcast – someone like... the Death Rider.

He hadn’t regarded the prophecy and its meaning much in recent times, but the man who stared back at him from the water now at least looked the part. Henry’s grin widened at the thought and he turned away, deciding he very much liked this new look for himself. “Let’s just say even I find it looks better with than without eyepatch”, he called in Thanatos’ direction and finally mounted up.

“If you say so”, the flier mumbled, his tone was concerned but he nonetheless spread his wings for lift-off.

The anticipated rush of joy at last engulfed Henry when the flier leaped in the air and performed an honorary round around the island, shouting “Run like the river – thank you for your hospitality!” to the crawlers who had assembled below them now.

“Run like the river!”, Henry echoed and then turned his gaze away from the island. Not for a single moment he glanced back.


	3. Familiar Strangers

“It is time for us to go to bed I believe. If I am not gravely mistaken, we will have a long and arduous day ahead of us tomorrow.”

Gregor looked up from where he had sketched the Starshade with the charred vine. His gaze met Hamnet who had spoken and now moved over to the fire to extinguish it, then Luxa at his other side. For a second he thought her pale skin glowed with the dim light of the lake, and despite the quite sorry state of her clothes, she had seldom looked better.

“I believe Aurora and I should sleep here as well tonight.” Her voice competed with the loud rushing of the waterfall and she took a step towards Hamnet. “Can we bring her here? I am certain she will feel easier with another flier at her side.” Her gaze met the peacefully dozing Nike.

Hamnet rose back up and nodded. “Certainly.” His gaze trailed to Gregor, “Will you come and help us?”

Gregor sighed and got up. “Sure.” He regarded Boots who had curled up with Hazard and Temp on Frill’s back, they were nearly invisible between the dense vines that bordered the clearing. Then Lapblood, somewhat offside. He thought she had still not entirely recovered from yesterday’s experience with the quicksand.

For a moment he was confused as he failed to spot Ripred, then he remembered Hamnet had sent him to gather more food earlier.

Gregor turned back to the curtain of vines that concealed the mouse colony this spring harbored and silently followed Luxa and Hamnet back in. He could hardly believe they had already spent more than a day here, it seemed like they had just arrived. Here, in this place that couldn’t feel more like a safe haven, shielded from the rest of the slumbering death trap that was the Underland-jungle.

Then again – his mind wandered back to the beginning of their journey, over the course of the Arch of Tantalus and their first encounter with Hamnet, the episode with Boots and the frogs, the plant that had eaten Mange and taken their water, and the chaotic blur that had followed – how much time had passed, since he had arrived back in the Underland?

Gregor sighed and tried hard not to begin counting days again. The days he had spent in the Underland so far. He knew they had to be traveling for less than a week, but he couldn’t tell exactly as his memory of the time before they had arrived here, after losing the water, was more than lackluster.

Why didn’t he want to count the days, Gregor suddenly asked himself, as he stepped into the little chamber the mice had provided for Aurora. The golden bat looked up as soon as they entered, somewhat dazed.

Of course he knew why. Gregor helped lift Aurora up and carry her down the tunnel that led back outside – because he didn’t want to think about his mother, still waiting in Regalia, about Howard and Andromeda and how sick they must be by this point.

Just as his mind wandered to Ares and how minuscule the chance of ever getting back in time to save him was, Gregor stopped himself. He could not think of Ares now. Because if he thought of Ares now, he would lose hope and losing hope was probably the worst thing that could happen to anyone out here.

Gregor determinately gripped Aurora’s fur tighter and shoved the curtain of vines aside to step through. Yet as he attempted to keep his balance on the somewhat slippery stones before the curtain something darted out of the dense vine network across from where they had come and over his head.

Gregor cried out and nearly slipped, Hamnet caught him in the last moment. “What was that?”

Gregor and Luxa simultaneously set Aurora down who twitched, yet remained in her painkiller-induced, light sleep.

As soon as her bat was on the ground Luxa stepped forward and drew her sword. Her gaze was turned upward, searching for the unidentified flying object. Gregor’s own unease amplified and he fumbled at his own belt, then remembered he had taken his sword off to sleep and not taken it back.

Yet before he could take another step forward towards where it lied on the floor, Hamnet had his arm. “Stay back...”

Gregor opened his mouth to protest – who knew what that was? For all the jungle had shown to harbor so far, it probably was in some shape or form deadly. But before he could say a word he winced again as the thing darted back over their heads, flew an honorary round over the lake, and finally touched down at the beach, next to where Hamnet had previously lit the campfire.

Gregor stared at the figure with round eyes, still clutching Hamnet’s arm. He... knew that bat, he thought, yet before he could call his name Hamnet beat him to it – “It... it is... Is it truly you, Thanatos?”

Gregor winced at the loud clanking sound Luxa’s sword produced as it slipped from her hand and hit the stone beneath. Only now he noticed everyone who had been silently dozing so far had awoken. Frill hissed and Hazard on her back ducked, her open ruff shielded the boy, Boots, and Temp. Even Nike had dazedly raised her head and Lapblood had assumed attack position.

Gregor blinked, attempting to make out the figure that now slowly slid off the back of the black bat with the distinct white face and couldn’t keep his heart from beating out of his chest. It’s the Death Rider, he thought, the image of a man with a mask from a rat skull and a flaming sword, riding on the neck of a serpent, flashed in his mind and he blinked, attempting to make him out better in the shade.

“It’s...”, the figure then spoke and regarded the defensive party members before stepping closer until the light from the lake properly illuminated his features.

Gregor’s gaze met his face for the first time and his eyes widened. Not from the fact that he had the distinct features of an Underlander – the pale skin, and the white-blond hair. Not from the fact that his later estimate regarding his age had been correct – he had to be around Howard’s age, Gregor thought and swallowed.

His face was stern and meager with prominent cheekbones and many scars that painted white, intricate lines on his skin. His hair was somewhat tousled and longer than even Hamnet’s, he now wore it tied to a short ponytail.

Yet all that was still not the reason Gregor’s eyes had widened in shock at the sight of his face. Something was not right, he thought and blinked, attempting to remember if he had seen two eyes through the sockets of the skull mask last time. He... must have, Gregor furrowed his brows, staring at the right side of the Death Rider’s face in disbelief. At the leather eyepatch that showed above and below the outskirts of what appeared to be a horrific scar.

“What in the actual name of Sandwich are YOU all doing here?”

His words were followed by a deathly silence, only disrupted by the incessant chirping of the jungle and the rushing of the water. But before Gregor or anyone could respond, a different voice cried – “Fur!”

The Death Rider winced and nearly fell over as Boots had slid off Frill’s back and waddled over, to latch onto his fur-covered leg.

Both Luxa and Gregor could barely suppress laughter and Hamnet stepped forth, eyeing the bat and his rider up and down. “Thanatos”, he repeated and Gregor barely had time to ask himself how they so apparently knew each other before he continued – “as... much of a surprise as it is to see you here, it’s a welcomed one. And you”, he turned to the Death Rider, “you are...?”

The outcast’s head jerked around and they locked gazes, staring at each other in silence for a few heartbeats. “It is... Hamnet”, the Death Rider finally mumbled, his eye round with disbelief. “Hamnet and...”, his gaze met Boots on his leg, then Gregor and Luxa, and finally Frill and Lapblood. “And...” Gregor had hardly ever seen him so genuinely lost.

In his stead, Thanatos spoke – “It is good to see you indeed, Hamnet. It’s certainly been a while, even in outcast-terms.”

“Indeed.” Hamnet took another step closer. “And you are not alone – after everything that happened it is you who appears here, with someone who...” He squinted his eyes at the Death Rider, “even... knows my name.”

“What of your own company?”

They all winced as the outcast himself interrupted, seemingly having regained some of his wit. “The Overland-siblings, their fliers, Queen Luxa”, his gaze wandered to Lapblood and Frill, on whose back Hazard had peeked his head up now. “And... some new faces.” He shook his head, “One could almost believe this is supposed to be another quest.”

“One could almost believe some of them have even the slightest clue as to who you are, because I certainly do not”, snarled Lapblood suddenly.

The outcast turned to her, giving a somewhat crooked smile – “Me? Of course, well, I am the Death Rider, prophesied grim reaper, part-time mercenary and aspiring quester, resided in the Dead Land, well, usually. At your service!” He lifted an imaginary hat and gave a small yet elaborate bow.

Lapblood was unimpressed, but Gregor, Luxa, and Hamnet – even Thanatos – grinned. Hazard on Frill’s back giggled, and Temp who had followed Boots to the outcast mumbled his own welcome, “Greetings to the Wielder of Light, greetings.”

“Ahh... so YOU are that “Death Rider” I keep hearing so much about – really? Who’d have thought”, a different voice sounded from the darkness, and everyone’s heads jerked in its direction.

Gregor could barely make out the silhouette of Ripred standing in the shade, his yellow gaze locked on the outcast who spun around, nearly tripping over Boots.

“YOU are here?!” Gregor made out unease in his voice and asked himself if the outcast and the rat had ever met. He had been surprised by Hamnet’s presence while Thanatos had not, for whatever that was supposed to mean. And now Ripred too.

Gregor blinked and quickly decided it was probably not worth it overthinking all these people’s past dynamics. Hamnet and his apparent history with everyone was a sensitive enough topic. And both the Death Rider and Thanatos were outcasts too, so it was probably equally complicated for them.

“Oh yes, I am.” He casually strolled forward and set down his bag with supplies before approaching the Death Rider again. “And so are you, it seems. Care to explain?”

At first, Gregor furrowed his brows but suddenly realized Ripred had a point. As nice as it was to see the Death Rider alive and well – what even could he be doing here?

The outcast exchanged glances with Thanatos who finally answered – “We were on our way to visit the nibblers that live here as we heard some kind of plague had broken out. We wanted to ensure they were safe.”

“I see...”, Ripred eyed him up and down, “friends with the mice, eh? Well, Luxa over there will relate to that. Isn’t that right, Your Highness?”

Luxa, who had taken a few steps forward until she stood face to face with the outcast, hesitated. “You know the nibblers?”

“We used to live here, actually. Like, we at some point spent three whole months here.”

Luxa’s eyes widened. “They never mentioned you...” In response to his furrowed brow, she hesitantly explained she had stayed with them herself over the last two months. “It was them who took us in after Aurora and I had been separated from the others in the Tankard”, she shot a glance back at the curtain of vines. “I owe them my light.”

“Well, looks like you got a taste of the life out here then”, the outcast grinned and Luxa returned his smile.

They stood face to face now, the outcast was more than two heads taller than her, and yet, in the eerie light of the water for a second Gregor thought they looked alike, in a way.

The resemblance was not nearly as striking as that with Hamnet and when the Death Rider turned, Gregor could have sworn he had imagined it. He shook his head and sighed. Maybe all these people had started to look alike to him now.

“Oh, she did.” The outcast winced as Ripred approached to pat him on the back so hard he nearly fell. “But formalities aside, I’m sure we’re all eager to exchange stories. You want to know what we are doing here, and we –” He narrowed his eyes at the Death Rider and then glanced around – “Had he always one eye?”

Gregor shook his head, so did Luxa. “I wanted to ask...”, she began but was cut off by the Death Rider – “Oh right, I’d nearly forgotten you all don’t know that. Well”, he shrugged, how Gregor thought meaning to seem casual, “turns out that’s what happens when a serpent bites you in the face. And before you ask – no, getting that information was not worth it.”

“A serpent?” All heads turned in Frill’s direction, on whose back a wide-eyed Hazard had risen now. “A real serpent? Father’s told me about them, but I’ve never seen a real one!”

The Death Rider gave a pained smile and tugged at the eyepatch. “Be glad. They’re bitches.” Then he hesitated and frowned – “Wait... father? Who is your father? Who... even are you?”

Hamnet, who had listened silently so far, shifted. “As you all seem to be acquainted, I assume we can trust him?” His gaze was on Thanatos as opposed to the questers.

The bat, as well as Gregor and Luxa, nodded. “He helped us during the quest to slay the Bane”, Luxa mumbled and Gregor nodded. “He’s saved mine and Twitchtip’s lives when nobody else would.”

“Well, in that case”, Hamnet stepped forth, beckoning Hazard. “May I introduce – this is Hazard, my son, and our friend Frill the hisser. Come, greet the newcomers, Hazard!”

It took only a few minutes for Hamnet to re-ignite the fire and assemble the questers around it. But when he beckoned the Death Rider to join, he could barely move from where he stood, with Boots still relentlessly clinging to his leg.

“Well, someone’s a fan of your footwear. Not that I can blame her. These look quite comfortable.” Hamnet carefully kneeled down and removed a protesting Boots from the outcast’s leg. “I like fur!”, she cried, slapping at Hamnet’s hand.

“Hey, you know what?” The Death Rider kneeled beside her, “it’s much too hot here to wear these anyway. You can have them, for all I care. As long as my legs aren’t in them only, of course.”

Moments later everyone watched a delighted Boots scamper off with the outcast’s boots, one under each arm, closely followed by Temp. Frill hissed she would watch they did not stray too far from the clearing, and so the Death Rider finally took a seat by the fire.

“I’m really sorry”, Gregor muttered as the outcast plopped down next to him, but he only shrugged. “I needed an excuse to take them off anyway. Though”, he narrowed his eye at Gregor, “if she ends up not giving them back I’ll hold you responsible.”

Gregor swallowed, insistently hoping Frill and Temp were watching Boots closely enough to prevent that. He eyed the Death Rider from the corner of his eye and thought his opinion on whether he should anger him had not changed.

Next to Gregor Luxa had taken a seat, with Hazard and Hamnet to her left, and across him on the other side of the fire cowered Ripred and Lapblood. Thanatos had lied down next to the outcast. Only Nike and Aurora were still sleeping.

Gregor yawned himself and remembered Hamnet had been meaning to send them to sleep before the Death Rider had arrived.

“So”, the outcast glanced around the assembly, he had to turn his head considerably to even see who and what was to his right. “Now that we’ve all been introduced –”, but before he could finish, Hamnet cut him off. “Actually, you’ve not introduced yourself. You came here with Thanatos, and they call you the Death Rider. But that can hardly be the only name you have.”

The outcast froze and clenched his jaw. “I... well, I don’t go by my old name anymore. It’s the Death Rider, and only that.”

A couple seconds of silence followed his announcement, then Hamnet cleared his throat. “Very well then. So is your right, of course.” He tilted his head. “The... Death Rider, I’ve heard that name before. Is there not a prophecy about him?”

The Death Rider nodded. “Gregor gave it to me when we last met.”

“A prophecy it was what you gave him, then”, Luxa mumbled. “I did not... I mean, there is also a mural on the wall of the old nursery, a mural titled “Death Rider”. Henry never mentioned a –”, she bit her lip at once and turned her gaze to the floor. “N... nevermind, press on.”

“I believe I know what mural you are talking about”, Hamnet nodded. “It lies beside the turtle, does it not?”

Luxa just nodded, and when nobody spoke, Ripred cleared his throat. “Alright, all... names and Death Rider murals aside, you were about to ask something, were you not?”

All gazes turned to the outcast who winced again as the rat addressed him. “I just wanted to ask what the hell you all are doing here”, he mumbled. “You could not have come for the nibblers, could you?”

Ripred shook his head. “You’ve heard of the Curse of the Warmbloods?”

The outcast nodded. “We’ve come to check whether the nibblers were affected. But they seem to not be.”

“Oh, the nibblers are fine”, Lapblood snarled. Gregor thought he made something like a spiteful undertone out in her voice. “But the gnawers die in large numbers. And even the humans have their casualties to bear, from what we hear.”

“Indeed”, Ripred eyed Gregor, “Our warrior himself could tell endless tales of what kind of casualties the humans incur, couldn’t you, Gregor?”

All eyes instantly darted to Gregor and he found himself wishing to slap Ripred in the face for that. Instead, he bit his lip and looked down. He said not a word, but the rat did – “With how both his bond and his mother lie in the hospital, am I not correct?”

“His... bond?!”

Gregor’s head shot up at the Death Rider’s surprised call. His brow was furrowed and there was something Gregor couldn’t put his finger on in his stare. “Yeah”, he replied. “He was the first one who caught it.” Gregor swallowed. He’s probably dead. He couldn’t bring himself to say it.

“... Oh.” The outcast averted his gaze. “Sorry to hear that.”

Gregor gritted his teeth. “The point is, we came here to find the cure, and if we don’t find it soon, a lot of people are going to die.” He dug his hand into the sandy ground.

“The cure... is here?”, the outcast frowned again. “In the jungle?”

Ripred nodded. “There’s this prophecy... weren’t you trying to decipher it earlier, Hamnet?”

“We were, but we haven’t a clue.” Hamnet sighed.

“To give you the short version, it calls for Gregor the warrior, his sister the princess, and this other folk”, Ripred gesticulated at the assembled questers, “to team up with us rats”, he pointed at Lapblood, “and venture into the Vineyard of Eyes to find the cure. And Hamnet’s here because he agreed to lead us. Ain’t that so?”

“Wait, the cure is in the Vineyard?”

“Yes”, Hamnet stared at the Death Rider intensely. “It is a flower, Gregor said. Didn’t you even sketch it earlier?”

Gregor nodded, but before he could get up and look for the stone with his drawing, the outcast squinted. “A... flower? It doesn’t happen to be small and white, with five petals that look like triangles”, he attempted to form the shape with his fingers.

Gregor’s eyes widened. “Y... yeah, that’s it!”, he eagerly nodded, “It’s called Starshade. Apparently, it grows in this Vineyard, where –”

“It’s actually not directly IN the Vineyard”, the outcast interrupted, “but there’s a whole massive plain of those flowers right beyond the Vineyard. We’ve rested there, like, every time we’ve crossed the stupid thing so far. It’s, what – an hour of flying from here?”

Gregor’s heartbeat instantly elevated. Before his inner eye, he saw the flower from Neveeve’s book and attempted to imagine a whole plain of it. His mouth automatically curved into a smile. Were they really so close to the cure already?

“You have crossed the Vineyard?” They all looked up as Hazard suddenly spoke, staring at the Death Rider with wide, green eyes. “Not even father has. He says it’s too dangerous.”

The Death Rider grinned and nodded. “I mean, it’s pretty awful, but you get used to it. Once you know what to expect it turns from a threat into a nuisance.”

“Oh, I am sure it does”, Ripred grinned and eyed the Death Rider with curiosity. “Well, seems we found ourselves an expert. Nothing against your leadership, Hamnet, you were excellent. But as you said yourself, you’ve no experience with the Vineyard itself.” He narrowed his eyes at the outcast, “Speak up then, lad, how is it?”

The Death Rider frowned. “Unsettling, is probably the word for it. It’s... eh, it’s hard to explain. You’ll see what I mean soon enough.”

Gregor swallowed. To him, the whole jungle was unsettling, to say the least, and he had no real desire to go to a place that was so bad even a veteran like the Death Rider found it uncomfortable. Then again, if it was what he needed to do to save his mom and friends, he clenched his fist, he’d go anywhere without hesitation.

“Oh, I am sure we will”, Ripred grinned. His words were followed by a moment of grave silence, if you disregarded the noises of the jungle. Finally, it was Hamnet who spoke – “So, you will lead us to this plain of Starshade, then?”

Luxa’s head jerked up at once and she stared at Hamnet, then at the Death Rider, but said nothing. Lapblood narrowed her eyes as well, but she also remained silent. The outcast himself winced. “You... I... what?”

Hamnet frowned. “If you know how to traverse it, we would appreciate your help”, he continued. “I know my way around the jungle, but as Ripred said, I’ve no experience with the Vineyard itself.”

Gregor looked back at the Death Rider who nervously tugged at his eyepatch, then pressed his lips together defiantly. “So now all of a sudden you ask for my help, while back on the waterway you voted to condemn us to certain death. Is that so?” His stare was only on Luxa.

She could not hold his gaze for longer than a couple heartbeats and her cheeks flushed purple. “I...”, she looked back up and squinted, “I will admit I have... misjudged your loyalty”, she mumbled. “I should not have sent you away.”

Gregor barely kept his jaw from dropping. He could not remember a single instance of Luxa ever apologizing to anyone.

“Is that so?” Apparently, it wasn’t enough for the Death Rider yet.

Luxa visibly swallowed. “I will be grateful if you help us reach the cure”, she finally blurted out.

Perplexed silence followed her words and Gregor couldn’t help but feel sympathy for her. Once in a while, her eyes would dart up to glance at the outcast’s face, and Gregor suddenly wondered if she blamed herself for what had happened to his eye. He had lost it in the process of saving her and Aurora, after all.

“There is no reason for us not to help them.”

All heads jerked up as Thanatos spoke for the first time. Gregor felt guilty as he had nearly forgotten the bat was there. Yet the Death Rider ignored him. “Lead you... through the Vineyard”, he slowly rose to his feet. “And then what?”

“Well”, Ripred tilted his head, “I can imagine some species will not be delighted once they hear we found the cure. I can very well see us being attacked on our way back and in that case, we could use all the competent help we can get. If my memory doesn’t fail me, the territory of the cutters lies directly behind the Vineyard.”

Gregor frowned and eyed Ripred. He had never mentioned an imminent attack. Wasn’t this a peaceful mission? Even the rats participated in it. Why would whoever these cutters were, or anyone, attack someone who tried to cure a plague?

“Competent help, you say? And what do you want from ME then?”

Everyone winced at the unexpected aggression in the outcast’s voice. He stumbled a few steps back and nearly tripped. Hamnet opened his mouth but he didn’t let him speak – “In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve not come out of that serpent-battle unscathed – and in case you haven’t realized, stuff like losing eyes has side effects. So I will be more hindering in battle than I will be useful!” He cried as he stumbled over the first of the rocks in front of the vine curtain.

Gregor sat there like rooted to the spot and stared at his strained face, as well as he could make it out. He immediately felt guilty for not having considered the consequences of such an injury. “You mean... like, like depth perception?”

The outcast twitched in his direction and narrowed his eye. “Depth perception, most of my hand-eye-coordination, half my field of vision”, he stretched his right arm to the side, like holding a sword. “I wouldn’t even be able to SEE my blade without turning my head!” He pressed his lips together, “So you all can go to your stupid Vineyard by yourselves. I came here to see the nibblers, and that I will – AGH!”

“What is this commotion out – AGH!”

Luxa was the only one who suppressed laughter as the Death Rider collided with someone who had emerged from behind the curtain of vines. Gregor just about made out the cream-colored fur of a mouse. “Cevian!”

The outcast steadied himself on the rocks and turned to the mouse as well. “Cevian!”

Only then Gregor recognized her. Shortly after they had arrived here, a mouse named Lovelace, who had claimed to be the leader of the colony, had greeted them and granted them permission to stay. The rats too, if the humans took over responsibility for them, even though mice and rats were apparently enemies in the Underland, or so Hamnet and Ripred had claimed.

And with Luxa’s own arrival had come Lovelace’s daughter, Cevian. _It was her who rescued Aurora and I,_ he recalled Luxa’s words, _without her, we would have both been lost._

Yet apparently, Luxa wasn’t the only one who was friends with Cevian.

“It is good to see you”, the outcast called but as soon as Cevian caught her first glimpse at his face, she winced in shock. “Y... you... your...!”

“Right, the eye.” He instinctively raised a hand to cup it. “I... I’ve got much to tell you, and I want to go see Teslas.”

Cevian twitched. “You... how long have you been here? You’ve not announced your arrival.” She threw a glance back at the assembled questers. “You did not come with them, did you?”

“No”, he shook his head without turning back. “I’ll tell you everything later, okay? I’m in your father’s workshop if you need me.” With that, he pushed the vines aside and disappeared into the colony. Outside remained Cevian and Luxa, both gazed after him somewhat confused.

“Would you like for Cevian and I to show you around the colony?”

Gregor looked up from where he had watched sleeping Boots and Hazard, in the curve of Frill’s body. He yawned, but one look in Hamnet’s direction showed he had no intention of sending them to sleep anytime soon. He had been in hushed debate with Ripred ever since the Death Rider had disappeared, maybe fifteen minutes ago.

Not that the kids, the bats, or Lapblood had cared much. All of them lied sleeping, even Thanatos had retreated into a secluded niche, after exchanging words of greeting with Cevian, somewhat offside the camp, though his ears were peeked, most likely at the ongoing conversation.

Gregor himself had just prepared to sleep as well, he was exhausted beyond belief. But as he looked back up at Luxa and her excited grin he knew he wasn’t going to get to sleep any time soon. “Sure!”

He sighed silently and followed Luxa over to the vine curtain where he made out Cevian with a hand lantern, not without throwing a few glances back at Hamnet and Ripred. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to see the colony or anything, in fact, he had been curious for it ever since they had arrived. He just wished they would wait with the tour until the next morning.

Yet when they then entered, Gregor immediately forgot his exhaustion. With intrigue he realized the colony was much more extensive than he had expected, and buzzing with busy life. Then again, he didn’t really know what he had expected, if anything. It wasn’t like he had ever seen something even remotely comparable.

“This is where I stayed. Well, when I wasn’t with Aurora, of course.” Luxa pointed into a small cave, right across the one they had fetched the golden bat from, earlier. Luxa’s lips pressed together at the sight and Gregor decided not to ask how many nights she had actually stayed in her own cave, as opposed to Aurora’s.

They walked in silence for a while and Gregor felt he should say something, so he attempted an encouraging tone. “She was really strong. And you too, you know?”

Luxa twitched. “She was.”

Gregor meant to reply but just as he had opened his mouth they met up with Cevian again who waited in something like a crossroad of four tunnels. “Would you like to see my father’s workshop?” She held the lantern into the narrowest tunnel and Luxa’s eyes lit up. “Oh yes, he will love Teslas’ workshop! Let’s go!”

She left Gregor not even a chance to protest as she grabbed his arm and dragged him along. He thought he should ask what kind of workshop she was talking about but decided he’d see soon enough anyway.

It took longer to get there than it had taken to get anywhere in the colony so far and Gregor was on the brink of asking when Cevian’s lantern illuminated a curtain from fabric, blocking the view to the cave behind. He had only a second to wonder why there was a curtain all of a sudden, he hadn’t seen any in the whole colony so far, when a strained voice sighed from beyond –

“It’s not like I expected you to do anything. It’s... I guess this is just how it is now.”

“Do not say that. Not like that. Not like you’ve given up hope. If you give up hope, you give up your strive to better yourself, and if you do that, you’re already lost.”

“Father?” Cevian stepped through the curtain, disregarding the voices one of which Gregor moments later recognized as the Death Rider’s. He opened his mouth to greet him when he followed Cevian through the curtain and instantly forgot what he had meant to say.

“Oh... oh geez”, Gregor mumbled as he gawked around, unable to close his agape-standing mouth.

“Yeah, that’s about what I said the first time as well.” He winced as someone addressed him and found himself face to face with the Death Rider. Next to him, Gregor made out a mouse, his fur was black and he wore something along the lines of a tool belt.

“Teslas, what are you –”, but before Luxa could finish her sentence the mouse, Teslas, how Gregor assumed, interrupted her. “Oh no, no, no. YOU are banned from here, or have you forgotten?”

Luxa’s mouth shut and she pouted. “Oh come on, it was an ACCIDENT!”

“Oh yes, and that ACCIDENT only cost me my entire stash of plant extracts. Do you have any idea how long it took me to gather them all?”

“Three... years, you said”, Luxa mumbled and despite her remorseful tone, Gregor saw the hint of a grin she could barely suppress.

“Wait... she did what now?” The Death Rider did not bother concealing his grin.

“SHE”, Teslas strolled over to Luxa and gave her a hefty pat on the back, “as she claims, ACCIDENTALLY, set off an unfinished version of a new fishing gadget and BROKE every SINGLE vial of plant extract I had ARDUOUSLY gathered over the course of THREE years on her first visit here. So I banned her permanently.”

The outcast instantly broke into vigorous laughter and as strangely amusing as the situation was, Gregor could no longer keep his own awe at bay. “You... you can actually build stuff? Like, all of this is yours?” He gesticulated around, though took care not to touch anything.

Teslas’ gaze met him and he eyed him up and down before giving something like a smile. “Indeed. H... hm, Death Rider, was it?” He glimpsed at the outcast, “he’s helped me with some of it during his time as my apprentice, but most of it is mine. T... Teslas, it is. My name, I mean.” He awkwardly approached and patted Gregor’s shoulder. “You look and smell like an Overlander.”

“I’m Gregor. And yeah, Overlander. Nice to meet you.” His smile was as awkward as Teslas’ expression.

“Man you guys are so antisocial!” It was the Death Rider who at last grabbed Gregor’s shoulder, “anyway, let’s not bother him for too much longer. He gets nervous when there are too many people in here, don’t you?”

“And take the royal whirlwind with you when you leave!”, Teslas screamed as the outcast was already dragging both Gregor and Luxa towards the exit. All she did was giggle.

“You’ve really studied under him for three months?” Luxa had not stopped pestering the Death Rider for a moment after they had left the workshop.

“Yeah.” He shoved them out into the tunnel that led to the vine curtain. “And you really broke all his plant extract vials?” Luxa only laughed as the three stepped out onto the clearing.

Gregor had remained silent for most of the walk, he was still in the process of digesting all he had seen. A mouse inventor, he smiled. “He has to be careful, the rats are out for inventors to build them weapons”, he mumbled and the outcast nodded. “I know. And he does too. Though he’s fairly safe here in the jungle. The rats fear the Vineyard, that’s why they’ve left this colony alone so far.”

Gregor nodded and only then looked ahead, to see both Hamnet and Ripred were staring at them. Or more specifically, the Death Rider.

“There you are”, Hamnet cleared his throat. “I... Ripred and I were wondering, if you are not willing to lead us, maybe you could at least –”

“I’ll lead you.”

All heads darted at the outcast when he spoke and he sighed. “Look, I’m not going to be of much use in a battle, but there’s no way I can sit around here knowing you all are heading for certain death.”

“We will not forget this”, Luxa mumbled, but he was apparently not done yet. “I’ve one condition though.” All remained silent and Gregor noticed Luxa’s fists were clenched. “If the cure for this plague is indeed that flower, shade-something or whatever, and if your doctors synthesize a cure from it – I want it.”

Gregor believed even with the jungle noises he’d hear a pin drop after his announcement. Luxa blinked a couple times and her eyes visibly wandered, looking for someone she could ask for advice, but in vain. Nobody but her had the authority to make such a promise.

After what felt like an eternity of silence she finally raised her voice – “If that is your price, you shall have it.”

Gregor stared at Boots whom Hazard had taken to sleep on Frill’s back again and readied himself to collapse beside his backpack. He yawned twice in a row and found himself incredibly grateful Hamnet had, at last, sent them to sleep, after the Death Rider had agreed to lead them.

Every fiber of his body was ready to collapse and sleep then and there when his gaze met Luxa, a couple feet from him. She had leaned on a rock and when he followed her gaze Gregor realized she was watching the outcast.

He had settled on the far end of the clearing and curled into a ball, with Thanatos by his side. He had left his boots off after Boots had given them back earlier, and he wore not his coat either. Well, of course not. It was searing hot. Gregor instinctively wiped his own forehead.

Despite how tired he was, his feet automatically carried him to Luxa. She threw him a short glance as he sat down beside her but went back to watching the Death Rider almost immediately.

They must have sat in silence for a couple minutes before she raised her voice – “I know this sounds silly, but there is something about him... I don’t know, it seems... I feel like I know him from somewhere.”

Gregor eyed her cautiously. “Really?” He looked back at the Death Rider and remembered that moment when he had thought they looked somewhat alike.

“It is impossible, is it not? He... something in the way he looked at me earlier...” Luxa did not finish her sentence and Gregor didn’t press her for more, despite his curiosity.

“I am being silly”, she mumbled and hung her head.

“No!” Gregor frowned, but before he could say more she shook her head. “It’s just that, for a second he reminded me of... of someone I... I used to know. I don’t even know why or how, it is utterly ridiculous, but I...”

“Why is it ridiculous?” Gregor had no idea who she was talking about, but she looked so miserable all of a sudden that for a second he considered embracing her, yet decided against it the moment the thought crossed his mind.

“Because he is dead.”

“Oh.” Gregor’s mouth shut and he averted his eyes. “Sorry.” Well, now he would definitely not ask more. She clearly didn’t want to talk about it, and yet his mind reeled. Was it one of her parents? Or a different relative?

“You should go to sleep, Gregor.”

He pressed his lips together and stood up. He could take a hint. “Yeah, I’m really tired.” Like on cue, he yawned. “You too though.”

Luxa nodded absent-mindedly and Gregor kept his eyes on her as he took the first step in the direction of his backpack. “Well, good night then, see you in the morning!”

The last thing he heard before collapsing where he intended to sleep was her, whispering “good night” back.

Gregor had no idea how long Hamnet had let them sleep for, yet when he awoke he felt stiff and sore, so much so he had to stretch for a full minute before he pulled himself to his feet.

Hamnet was already grilling fish and mushrooms over a re-lit fire, and when his eyes searched for Luxa he spotted her sitting on one of the rocks in front of the vine curtain, playing with two mouse babies.

Just as Gregor had approached her, the Death Rider emerged behind her from the curtain, accompanied by two mice, a grey one with long fur and one who Gregor assumed to be a baby, she was all white and maybe half as tall as the grown one. Before anyone could say anything she had darted past Gregor and Luxa at Thanatos, who had been stretching his wings and was nearly run over by her enthusiasm.

The Death Rider laughed and the grey mouse joined in. “Man, must she have missed him”, the outcast mumbled and the mouse nodded.

Then he remembered Gregor. “Platonius”, he pointed at the grey mouse. “And the one climbing on Death is his granddaughter Curie. We saved them from a rat prison, a while ago, that’s how we even ended up here in the first place.”

They exchanged a few words and Gregor found with every day he spent here, he liked the mice more and more. Not a single species in the Underland had ever treated such a diverse group as them so hospitably and welcoming.

It turned out Platonius had been sent by Lovelace to share their food with the questers, and Hamnet could add salad and some kind of berries to the menu.

“Want some of this too?” The Death Rider held out a somewhat clunky-looking loaf of bread. “It’s not salted, but it’ll suffice for sandwiches.”

Hamnet froze mid-cutting the salad. “Some... what?”

“How do you know this term?” Gregor winced as Luxa had jumped from her stone and appeared behind the outcast, closely followed by the two babies she had played with. “I had not heard of it before Gregor explained it, during our first journey together, to save his father.”

The Death Rider opened his mouth but was cut off by Ripred who audibly spit out the head of his second fish and yawned. “Oh, he most certainly caught it on your boat last time. Didn’t you?”

The outcast shut his mouth again and turned his way. “Yes, that’s it! Gregor mentioned it and it stuck with me, because, well, it’s pretty striking!”

For a moment Gregor thought his voice had a nervous undertone, but when he turned back to help Hamnet prepare the food, Gregor left it alone.

Only five minutes later they all sat around the campfire eating sandwiches with salad, mushrooms, and grilled fish. Gregor shuddered as he remembered the raw fish from last time and thought this was the best meal he had ever eaten on a quest.

Lapblood occasionally threw the mice who had joined their circle dismissive glances and even Ripred seemed somewhat uncomfortable in their presence, but they all were too taken up by the food to protest.

Hazard soon found himself surrounded by the babies who had played with Luxa earlier. The grey one was called Scale, the brown one Cube. The boy eventually seized eating and began feeding the babies instead, talking to them in their own language. Boots tried to participate in the conversation, but of course, she only made random squeaking sounds that seemed to irritate the mice more than they conveyed anything.

Gregor had just picked her up to ask Temp and Frill to keep her entertained when Hazard seized squeaking to stare at the Death Rider with round eyes. “Can... can you understand them?”

Gregor froze mid-movement and looked from Hazard over to the outcast who grinned widely, then produced more of the same squeaking noises the boy had made. “I too talk like mouse!”, Boots demanded and Gregor turned back to her. “Hey, maybe Hazard can teach you.”

The squeaking noises only increased in volume now that four voices instead of three were producing them and Gregor sighed before setting down a protesting Boots in front of Temp.

“Now would you look at that”, he overheard Ripred’s hushed whisper to Hamnet on his way back, “not only has he experience with the Vineyard, he also speaks a different language. What will we discover next? That he flies without his bat?”

Gregor’s gaze trailed to the outcast who had now picked Cube up to sit on his head and laughed about something. Well, if he was entirely honest, it would not surprise him. Not anymore.

Hamnet and Ripred allowed them all to chat for another half an hour, yet Gregor noticed the more and more dire gazes they exchanged once in a while. Shortly after the mice had said their goodbyes Hamnet opened his mouth to speak, yet he was cut off by Luxa. “We have not heard your side of the story yet, Death Rider.” She eyed him curiously. “What became of you after we battled the serpents?”

The outcast pressed his lips together and his gaze darted at Thanatos, who seemed in some sort of conversation with Nike. Though, maybe “conversation” was not the correct term, as from what he saw she did most of the talking and he sat and listened, looking somewhat exhausted. The instant he heard the question his ears peaked and, to Nike’s eternal disappointment, he moved over to the rest of the group.

“What’s her deal?”, the outcast asked, nudging the bat who only groaned. “She seems to be overly interested in how we first met you all”, he regarded the rest of the group with a look.

The Death Rider only laughed. “Oh come on, don’t look so sour and socialize a little. Aren’t you fliers supposed to be super social?”

The bat with the white face narrowed his eyes. “Well, SOME of us are.” He threw Nike a glance who, as Gregor thought, giggled, then began to whisper with Aurora. They were both visibly doing much better this morning.

“Didn’t she ask you a question though?” Thanatos nodded in Luxa’s direction and the Death Rider froze, turning his head towards her. “Right.”

The tale that followed shook Gregor to his core, as he was certain it did everyone. Hamnet inspected the fabric the spinners had stitched onto Thanatos’ wing with something like awe, and both Nike’s and Aurora’s eyes were round as they heard in which state he had flown himself and the outcast out of the Labyrinth.

Gregor too had to admit it sounded unbelievable, and when he next looked at Thanatos he did so with more respect than before.

At the mention of the two bonding, it was Luxa whose eyes widened. Gregor frowned, hadn’t they claimed bonding was out of the question for them on the boat?

But when Luxa broke into spontaneous applause Gregor turned his frown into a smile and joined her, so did Hamnet, and Ripred only moments later. Hazard tilted his head in something like confusion and Lapblood at least managed a grin.

The outcast jumped to his feet and bowed like a stage performer but Thanatos retreated a few inches and nervously flapped his wings, as opposed to accepting the applause.

Yet with the applause also ended the Death Rider’s story. He insisted on hearing what had happened to the others next, so Gregor took over, describing his ordeals in the Labyrinth and why he hadn’t killed the Bane.

“Oh no, Ripred’s a daddy now, how adorable!”, he laughed pointing a finger, which earned him a hefty slap from the rat’s tail. “Worth it”, he only mumbled and even Gregor had to grin at that.

There wasn’t much more than that to Gregor’s tale either and as soon as he concluded with Nerissa’s interpretation of the prophecy, Hamnet stood up. “Alright... this was a pleasant get-together”, he glanced around, “and I am certain where we are headed, we will be better off in good mood.” He exchanged a look with Ripred. “But we must get going now.”

The group instantly fell silent and Gregor swallowed, eyeing the dense vines beyond the clearing. Of course, he had nearly forgotten what lied ahead.

It took but ten minutes to ready the group for departure. Hamnet did a last round of medical check-ups – re-bandaging injuries, including Gregor’s singed feet, and administrating painkiller to both Nike and Aurora. They would ride on Frill, together with their supplies.

It took some effort to get Nike to leave Thanatos to take her place on the lizard’s back, meanwhile, Gregor fetched Boots to take her designated seat on Temp. Everyone else was to go on foot.

When he had secured the bats, Hamnet turned back to the group and exchanged glances with the Death Rider. He had put his boots back on, yet his sword was not strapped to his back as before, the handle instead stuck out of his backpack.

“To the Vineyard of Eyes, then”, Hamnet called, and Frill led the way into the jungle.


	4. Vineyard

There was a small path, worn by the mice traveling to the spring, but it quickly became overgrown, so that soon they were wading their way through the jungle again. It was harder here. The vines grew more thickly so that in places they had to separate them with their hands to get through. The stems snapped shut behind them instantly.

At times, Gregor couldn’t even see most of his fellow travelers. He stayed right on top of Temp and Boots, making sure they didn’t get lost in the foliage.

Only ten minutes into their trek Hamnet had them stop and gather together to assign each of them a number, one through thirteen. Proceeding forward everyone had to sound theirs off periodically.

He called his designated “nine!” off for the fourth time when Gregor noticed Luxa had fallen back in line, to walk just ahead of him. He asked her about how Aurora was doing, and when she wanted to know more about Hazard, he willingly answered her questions.

When she realized he was her cousin her brows furrowed and Gregor attempted an encouraging smile. “I think he’ll be a good one. Like Nerissa or Howard”, but all she did was avert her gaze.

Gregor asked himself if he had said something wrong, but moments later Luxa changed the subject and continued talking, about how Nerissa was queen now, so he decided to leave it alone.

When he ran out of news from Regalia Gregor asked what he would have asked, after telling his own story about what had happened in the Labyrinth, hadn’t Hamnet interrupted. He wanted to hear Luxa’s own story, as to what had happened to her and Aurora after they had been separated.

She willingly talked, of hours of floating in chilly water before Twitchtip had found them and offered to lead them to safety. Then Gregor stiffened as she described how dozens of rats had launched a seemingly coordinated attack. She had told Temp to carry Boots to safety while she, Aurora, and Twitchtip had held them off. “Twitchtip told me to run after we had won Temp a considerable headstart”, she finally mumbled. “She directed Aurora and I into a network of tunnels that led us to the jungle.”

Gregor opened his mouth but hesitated, before asking for Twitchtip’s fate. Judging by the shamed expression on Luxa’s face it couldn’t be anything good. “She... remained behind”, Luxa confirmed his suspicion and swallowed. “I do not know what happened to her, Gregor. She was weakened from her injuries... I... I do not know.”

He averted his gaze at once, for her not to see his dejected expression. He knew it wasn’t her fault, that she must have done all she could, and he didn’t want her to feel even worse about it, yet he could not conceal his own grief.

Before Gregor could dwell on Twitchtip longer, Luxa continued her tale. She spoke of hours of wading through dense foliage, then a surprise attack by a giant tree snake, during which Aurora’s wing had dislocated. “We had barely escaped into a cave too narrow for the snake to follow when Cevian found us. She helped me carry Aurora to the colony”, Luxa bit her lip. “Had she not been there to save us, we would have both lost our light.”

Gregor instinctively glanced back, in the direction of the colony, and spotted the Death Rider who had taken to walk last to ensure nobody was left behind instead. He had nearly caught up to them now. “Don’t fall too far behind”, he scolded, and Luxa nodded, then quickened her pace.

Gregor prepared to follow her example but hesitated, regarded Temp with Boots who now trotted beside Luxa, and remained behind with the Death Rider. He had nearly forgotten again, but Luxa’s story had reminded Gregor he had wanted to talk to the outcast about something. Preferably when she wasn’t listening.

He decided he would start with the easy part. “Hey, so, you don’t deny you are the Death Rider anymore?”

The outcast grinned. “No... the prophecy convinced me. It was... weird, to have everything that had happened over the last months suddenly in form of a prophecy, but it was pretty obvious. And besides”, he grinned somewhat crookedly, “it’s a nice-sounding name.”

Gregor returned his grin, yet couldn’t prevent it from looking somewhat pained. Of course, someone like the outcast would say that. He personally hated even “warrior”. “Death Rider” sounded about a hundred times worse.

“I mean, as long as you’re happy with – nine!”, he interrupted himself to call his number as he heard Nike’s “eight!” somewhere up ahead. The rest of the party quickly sounded off as well until the Death Rider concluded with his own – “Thirteen! All there!”

Gregor fervently tried to formulate words in his head for what else he wanted to say. “Hey, one more thing”, he lowered his voice even more and didn’t face the outcast to conceal his somewhat flushed face, “I... I wanted to thank you for saving Luxa and Aurora, back in the Tankard.”

Boots had been on Aurora too. Gregor sighed, hadn’t he intervened, she would have died as well. At least that was what he told himself. Gregor’s gaze darted ahead to where Luxa’s shape had just disappeared between the dense vines. He was definitely glad she had survived as well.

“Don’t mention it.” The outcast eyed him somewhat knowingly and Gregor bit his lip and quickly averted his gaze. But what if... he wanted to mention it? “You... you lost your eye for that”, he mumbled without looking at him. “And you did it after we sent you away, after SHE sent you away. Not just anyone – actually, barely anyone would do that.”

Luxa’s words from last night flashed in Gregor’s mind, about the outcast reminding her of someone, and he had to consciously prevent himself from looking back at him. If he was indeed a stranger, why would he have risked his life for her in such a manner?

“I also said I would help those who needed help.”

Gregor’s gaze finally met him again, but the outcast continued – “And Luxa sure did need help there. It’s... it’s honestly fine.”

Gregor remained silent. It was evidently not fine, he had expressed that well enough back at the colony. He had nearly refused to lead them because it was not fine.

“Well, it made quite the impression on her”, Gregor spoke again after a seeming eternity of silence. “I’ve not heard her apologize to anyone ever. Or ask for help in that manner.”

To Gregor’s surprise, the outcast laughed. “Oh, I can imagine that.” Before Gregor could ask why he would say that, he spoke on. “You... Ripred said your bond had the plague, right?”

Gregor pressed his lips together and nodded. “He’s... he’s the first one who caught it. He’s...” He could still not bring himself to say that Ares was most likely dead. “He, and Howard, and Andromeda”, he instead went on listing the names of the plague victims the Death Rider knew.

“Howard?” The Death Rider turned his way, “Andromeda”, he mumbled, his hand fumbled mindlessly with the strap of his backpack. “The tall, grumpy boy and Mareth’s flier?”

Gregor nodded. “They weren’t as sick as Ares, I mean, my bond, when we left but who knows how things are now.” He angrily brushed a large vine aside. “That’s why we need the cure, you know?”

Only then he remembered the Death Rider was an outcast. Why would he give anything on whether the people Gregor cared about survived or not? He didn’t live in Regalia, and whatever his history with them all was, they couldn’t be extremely close, or someone would have recognized him.

For a second Luxa’s uncertain face popped into his head but Gregor shook it. There was no way. If he was someone she had once known, she would have definitely recognized him.

But in that case – Gregor opened his mouth to ask why he had so fervently insisted on helping them, if he indeed had no allegiance to Regalia, when a voice up ahead cried – “Here lies the Vineyard of Eyes!”

“Hey, I’ll be in the front. Don’t lose the group!” Gregor winced as the Death Rider brushed past him and forward. He barely managed an “uhu” before he had disappeared between the dense vines.

Moments later Gregor himself sped up and quickly caught up to Boots on Temp’s back and Luxa. The four of them stepped through the last curtain of foliage together and came out along the stone rim of a valley.

Gregor flinched as Thanatos shot out of the vines behind them and soared over their heads for a moment, then landed beside Frill. He thought the bat had been flying above the dense vine network, yet his attention was instantly taken up by what lied ahead.

Gregor just about managed to close his agape-standing mouth as his gaze wandered over the valley before him. It was covered with vines too, but these were more slender and graceful with delicate blossoms of every shade. A light, sweet scent filled the air, which was the coolest they had encountered since they’d entered the Arch of Tantalus, and the normally relentless chatter of the jungle sounded more distant than even at the colony. Over the valley was a deafening hush.

Gregor blinked, attempting to wrap his head around what he was seeing. Was this the Vineyard? Why did everyone dread it so, then? He inspected the gorgeous scene. It was like a magnificent garden from a picture book, with those multicolored blossoms and that glorious smell and...

The smell. Gregor squinted as he suddenly saw Mange before his inner eye, and the plant that had killed him. It had smelled deliciously, but it had only brought death. He pressed his lips together. Maybe here in the jungle beauty was synonymous with danger. And in that case – he fixated the gorgeous scene ahead – what did the unnerving beauty of this place mean for its danger level?

Frill was the first to set foot onto the smooth, wide stone path leading into the valley and the rest followed on her tail. Gregor raised his head to look up and saw the vines grew in a high arch above their heads as if they’d been planted and pruned by an expert gardener.

“Who made the path?” Gregor didn’t know who exactly he had meant to ask, in the end, it was the Death Rider who responded. “The Vineyard made the path itself. To invite weary travelers in.”

Gregor furrowed his brows and stopped so abruptly he nearly ran into Ripred who had taken to walking last. “The... Vineyard?” A terrible suspicion overcame Gregor and he instinctively ducked a little, eyeing the vines cautiously. Was this just a large-scale version of the plant that had eaten Mange? But instead of a single plant, a whole variety had worked out this enticing trap together?

Gregor felt like he had been walking in perfect, unblemished sunlight, yet now a cloud had suddenly drifted in front of the sun, throwing a dark, ghastly shade over the formerly welcoming scene.

Even though neither the lighting nor the temperature had changed, Gregor shivered. He instinctively sped up to grab Boots’ hand who still rode Temp. Gregor thought the cockroach knew not to stray from the path, yet he still felt safer when he could hold Boots himself.

Frill with Nike and Aurora on her back, the Death Rider, and Hamnet with Hazard by the hand, led the party down the path confidently while Luxa covered them on the right and Lapblood on the left. Thanatos flew above their heads and the fact that he was there eased Gregor’s mind considerably. The bat would certainly spot any upcoming danger. Gregor with Boots and Temp came next, Ripred, in the rear, walked alone.

He took a deep breath, attempting to assess how vulnerable they were at the moment. Ripred and Lapblood could fight, so could Gregor and Luxa. He instinctively placed a hand on the hilt of the sword he had put back into his belt. But other than that? The Death Rider had his sword not even readied, the children were definitely not fit for battle, Aurora and Nike were helplessly strapped to Frill’s back, and Hamnet and Frill would probably not want to fight even if something attacked them.

His eyes darted up at Thanatos, could he fight? Bats normally didn’t, not without the humans, but who knew. He was an outcast, he probably had to be able to at least defend himself.

Gregor sighed, then fixated his gaze straight ahead again. He was only making himself more nervous, thinking about these things. Instead, he tried to think of how close the cure was, according to the Death Rider. It only helped a little.

Still, they made good time as the path continued to be smooth and straight, gently sloping downward. It was easy to travel but Gregor constantly felt like they were descending down the throat of some horrible beast and his unease grew the further they went. This must be what the Death Rider had meant when he had described this place as “unsettling”, Gregor thought and shuddered. He’d been perfectly contented not knowing.

They must have traveled for at least an hour when they came to a large clearing, shaped in a geometrically perfect circle. Across the way from which they had arrived, three smaller paths branched out from a single point, equal angles between them. Like they had been measured and drawn with the aid of a protractor.

It was truly a trap meticulously designed to convey perfect symmetry, Gregor thought, eyeing each tunnel opening with unease. Designed by someone. Or... something.

“We should camp here”, the Death Rider had Hamnet’s arm suddenly. “They should be rested for what lies ahead.” He threw a somewhat nervous gaze backward and Gregor furrowed his brows. Why did what lied ahead require them to be more rested than what lied behind?

Yet Hamnet asked no questions. Like they had come to an agreement previously, Gregor thought, he simply walked up to the middle of the circle to put his lantern down. “We shall eat and rest here”, he announced and Gregor’s unease rose. Did he and the Death Rider know something they others didn’t?

The group had soon assembled around the light tightly and they ate in near unbroken silence. When they were done, Hamnet exchanged a glance with Ripred and rose. “Frill and I will go and scout the path”, he announced. “It will be good to know where we are going exactly and what we must prepare for.”

“Wait”, the Death Rider cut him off. “I should come with you, then. It’s unwise to scout ahead without someone who’s traveled the path before at least once.”

“Then I will go.” All heads darted in Thanatos’ direction who was already spreading his wings. “I have crossed it as many times as you, I will watch over him and show him what he must be careful of. You should stay with the party, just in case.”

The Death Rider hesitated, then nodded. “That’s fair. Have fun, you three.” He audibly yawned and Gregor asked himself how used to this place he must be by this point.

“Fine”, Ripred joined in his yawning. “The rest of us can take turns sleeping. And whoever expected me to take the first watch can forget that at once. I’m spent.”

The Death Rider raised an eyebrow when all gazes instantly darted to him, looked around, and made a face when nobody else volunteered. “Fine”, he groaned. “I’m taking watch. But only for half the night, you all!” He yawned again. “What the hell even am I, a babysitter?”

Ripred snarled – “Welcome to the club, lad”, before plopping down and stretching his limbs in all directions.

From the corner of his eye, Gregor saw Luxa exchange glances with Aurora and he asked himself if she trusted the outcast enough to let him watch over their sleep. But he also saw her trying to suppress an obvious yawn.

Gregor sighed and thought he might as well try and get some rest, with how apparently he would need it. Yet before he had the chance to find somewhere to lie down he was interrupted by the determined voice of Hazard, who demanded Hamnet took him along as well.

The debate lasted a full five minutes, yet when it became apparent Hazard would attempt to sneak after them should they leave him behind, Hamnet begrudgingly agreed. He placed the boy on Thanatos’ back, ordering him to stay put, and together with Frill, they made off down the middle path.

Gregor stared after them until they disappeared out of sight. “Will Hamnet be alright?”

“Oh, you must certainly not worry about Hamnet.” Gregor’s head darted to Ripred, only now realizing he had asked the question aloud.

“He can look after himself. And he has Thanatos with him too, who is about as good at taking care of himself as Hamnet.” Ripred showed a toothy grin. “Survived – what, ten years? Has it truly been ten years already? Out here without any help from the rest of us, Hamnet, that is.”

Gregor pressed his lips together yet before he could respond, Luxa broke the silence. “Why did he leave Regalia, Ripred?”

All heads darted up to her, even Lapblood who had been in some conversation with the Death Rider turned her way. Both of them stared, yet while Lapblood’s gaze was melancholy and dire, the outcast made no effort to hide his evident curiosity.

“They never told you? Not your mother? Or Vikus?” Ripred sat up again and tilted his head.

“No.” Luxa inched closer to the lantern. Gregor thought in its light her eyes looked darker than ever. “Henry heard Hamnet had gone mad. But he could never find out the whole story, and Henry could find out anything. Well... almost.”

“Oh is that so?” Ripred smirked, then his expression darkened again. He visibly pondered for a moment, then nodded, sliding closer to the lantern as well until he sat right across from Luxa. “You may as well know”, he finally shrugged. “You all.”

Ripred let his gaze wander until it met the Death Rider before it darted back to Luxa. “I expect Vikus is only waiting for you to be old enough to tell, but he would keep you young as long as possible. And it is hard for him to talk about Hamnet without weeping.”

“Then you tell me.” Luxa stared directly at him. “And Vikus and I will both be in your debt.”

“You in my debt, Your Highness? Well, that’s an opportunity I can scarcely let pass.” Ripred slouched over on his side and stared into the lantern’s flame. Only then Gregor noticed they all had drawn closer. Temp cowered at his side and Boots nudged her way onto his lap and he wrapped his arms around her. She gave a big yawn and leaned her head against his chest.

The Death Rider scooted over to sit between Gregor and Ripred, Lapblood sat on his other side. Aurora and Nike huddled next to Luxa who had pulled on her legs and stared at Ripred with wide, earnest eyes.

“Now where to begin?”, the rat eyed the assembly, then shook his head. “You see, the thing is... the thing you have to understand is, that humans and rats were not always so consumed with hatred for each other. Or at least, the hatred has ebbed and flowed, so that there have been periods when one could hope for genuine peace. These times coincided with both the rats and the humans having leaders who placed a higher priority on harmony than gain. Several hundred years ago, they say, was such a time.”

Boots tugged at his vest and Gregor began stroking her curls.

“As a token of goodwill” Ripred’s tail twitched, “the humans of ancient gave a gift to the rats. A place the fliers had named the Garden of the Hesperides. Sandwich's own people had planted the garden soon after they had arrived in the Underland.”

“I’ve heard that name before!”, the Death Rider suddenly called, yet Ripred shot him a death glare. “Be still or I am not telling you anything. Anyway, there was a small plain that flooded each year when the river was high. The humans had built a dike so that the plain would no longer flood, and when it dried, the land was very fertile. They had planted... apple trees.” Ripred let out a delightful hum. “And what apple trees! Sure, they were small, by Overland standards, but sturdy and able to grow with just the light from the river. There were sluice gates along the dike that could be opened and shut to provide water. The trees flourished and soon their branches were heavy with golden apples.”

Gregor’s eyes widened. He opened his mouth to ask how that was possible, then shut it again as Boots sleepily murmured “A is for apple.”

Ripred ignored her. “For the rats, it was a rare gift indeed. Unlike you humans, we can not grow crops. But the trees required little care and produced fruit almost continually. When I was a pup, I remember it was a great treat to go to the garden”, Ripred paused and stared into the flame intensely, “to eat the apples, to sleep in the caves surrounding it, which smelled as sweet as the fruit.”

Gregor barely suppressed a laugh at the thought of Ripred ever being a pup, yet Lapblood cut him off. “What a remarkable treat indeed.” She sighed, “I’ve always imagined taking my own pups there someday. I wish they could have seen it.”

Ripred looked up. “We all did”, was all he replied and took a deep breath. But before he could keep speaking, Luxa interrupted. “I have never even heard of this garden...”, she furrowed her brows, clinging tightly to her legs.

“No, because if you had heard of it, you would also have heard the story of

why your uncle left.”

“Not true”, the outcast spoke, “I’ve heard of the Garden, yet I’ve not a clue as to what it has to do with Hamnet’s disappearance. Sure, the time matches and...”, he frowned, “wait... right, he was there, was he not?”

“If you all will at last shut your traps and listen, I am in the process of TELLING you”, Ripred hissed and the outcast’s mouth closed at once.

The rat glanced around like he did not trust the silence before he spoke on. “Well, ten or so years ago was not one of those fortunate, peaceful times. While your father was a decent enough king in some respects, Your Highness, he was too rigid in others. And, of course, King Gorger was a bloodthirsty monster from the get-go.”

They all looked at the Death Rider as he sounded a silent scoff. “How you all even let that moron rule you is a mystery in itself”, he mumbled and Ripred stared at him wide-eyed, then laughed. “Oh, oh there you go, lad, the fact that you’re the first person I hear utter those words in ten years is a true shame.”

The Death Rider shrugged. “It is what it is.”

“It sure is.” Wouldn’t Gregor know better, he’d have thought Ripred’s gaze was melancholy. “Anyway”, he spoke on, “the humans decided they wanted the Garden back and Solovet sent an army under Hamnet’s command to run out the rats.” He paused and pondered, “Of course, you must know that Hamnet, at the time, was hands down the best warrior among the humans. Proclaimed Lord Deputy at the age of eighteen and selected to take control of the army after his mother, since he seemed just like her. But as it turned out, he was as much like Vikus as he was like Solovet. And so he was doomed.”

Gregor began to get a sick feeling in his stomach. He had an impulse to tell Ripred to stop. He was not sure he wanted to hear the rest of the story. But, his gaze searched for her automatically, Luxa did. It was about her uncle, and he would not ruin this for her.

Yet when he made out her face, Gregor saw she had looked up. “Hamnet was... the next commander? Henry always said he would –” She cut herself off and averted her gaze.

Ripred tilted his head. “Henry? Oh is that so?”, he grinned. “Interesting choice. Yet you must remember all this happened when Henry was six years old. They probably thought they could fill the position with someone they had nothing else to do with after Hamnet disappeared.”

The Death Rider’s gaze shot up and Gregor wondered what had startled him, then he remembered he had most likely no idea who Henry was. Before he could properly wonder why his gaze seemed hostile, Ripred continued – “Under Hamnet, the humans and their fliers launched a surprise attack. The rats, most of whom were playing in the garden with their pups, were thrown into chaos. But Gorger wouldn’t have it”, he lowered his head. “Of course he wouldn’t.”

The rat narrowed his eyes and glared into the lantern, once more Gregor thought he spotted melancholy in his gaze. “Whitespur”, he at last squeezed out the name, “who at the time was regarded his prime general, was sent to defend the garden. And so she did. Herded the pups into the surrounding caves and regrouped all who could fight.”

Lapblood twitched at the name and Gregor’s own unease rose.

“Under her lead, they fought so viciously the tide began to turn in their favor. But Hamnet had a backup plan, provided by his mother.”

For the second time now Gregor had an impulse to tell Ripred to stop. He became less and less sure whether he wanted to hear the rest of the story, the more the rat talked. But a glimpse at Luxa with her widened, eager eyes sufficed to suppress it again.

“If the rats should prove too strong, he was to open the sluice gates and flood the field. Then the rats would have to swim, and the humans on their fliers would have a great advantage. So”, Ripred raised his head to stare directly at Luxa, “Hamnet opened the gates.”

Gregor could have heard a pin drop in the silence that followed. He consciously relaxed his jaw as Hamnet’s words to Vikus flashed in his mind – _I do no harm. I do no more harm._ Was he about to find out what that harm had been?

“The river was high, the dike was centuries old. As the water burst through the sluice gates, the surrounding mortar and stone crumbled and the whole dike gave way – not merely flooding the plain, but reclaiming it under twenty feet of water. Hundreds of rats were drowned in the deluge, and many humans and fliers were caught as well. But the carnage didn’t end there.”

Gregor could barely steady the shaking of his hand.

“Having filled the plain, the water rushed into the caves, drowning the pups who had been hidden there for safety.” Ripred squinted, “You could hear their shrieks for miles around.”

Lapblood’s paw twitched, her ears were put on and for a mere heartbeat her eyes jolted shut. An icy shiver ran down Gregor’s spine.

“What did Hamnet do?”, Luxa asked. He had seldom heard her voice so numb.

“He began a desperate effort to rescue the drowning. Human, rat, bat, anyone he could get his hands on, but it was... useless. Hamnet’s own flier, his bond, was dragged under by two rats trying to save themselves. She never resurfaced.”

Gregor instinctively wrapped his arms tighter around Boots on his lap and saw Luxa glimpse at Aurora.

“Hamnet was pulled out by Mareth, who had to knock him senseless in order to keep him from diving back into what was by the time a lake of corpses.”

A scene flashed before Gregor’s inner eye, the crazed shape of Howard in Mareth’s grip, after Pandora had been eaten, and had he not consciously stopped himself from biting his lip he would have tasted blood soon.

“When Hamnet regained consciousness in Regalia, he was, for all practical purposes, mad. For days, he recognized no one and spoke in strange, garbled sentences. Then his reason returned and he stopped speaking entirely. A few nights later he vanished. A year after his disappearance he was pronounced dead and all efforts to locate him ceased”, Ripred concluded with a side glimpse at the Death Rider who had long turned to unmoving stone where he sat, before looking back at Luxa. “And that is the story of your uncle Hamnet.”

Gregor thought the silence that followed could only have been a few seconds long yet to him it stretched into eternity. It was finally Aurora who broke it – “What... happened to the garden?”

“It lies underwater, since. And those golden apple trees will not grow anywhere else in the Underland”, Ripred shook his head. “So they were lost along with it.”

His last words were once more followed by deafening silence. All Gregor heard was the occasional crackle of the lantern and Boots’ soft snoring as she slept on his lap. It was like they had all internally come to the conclusion to hold a minute’s silence in honor of the tragedy, and Gregor fought to keep himself from shaking. From waking Boots.

Everyone winced as a strained voice came from the middle path – “Telling tales out of school again, Ripred?”

Gregor didn’t know how long Hamnet had been sitting there, on Thanatos’ back, holding his sleeping son, with Frill beside them. Long enough, though.

“You know my theory on that, Hamnet”, the rat regarded him with an unreadable gaze. “The more tales told, the less chance of repeating them. Maybe it will help the younger generation out one day.”

Hamnet’s gaze was on Luxa. “Maybe”, he slowly slid off Thanatos’ back, “Depending on whose ears they inherited.”

Ripred didn’t reply. “Any luck out there?”, he asked instead.

“I think so”, Hamnet lied Hazard on Frill’s back, then approached. When he was properly illuminated by the lantern’s light Gregor recognized he held up a handful of plants. The roots still dangled from the stems yet above his clenched fist was a cluster of star-shaped leaves.

* * *

“Hey, you awake?”

Thanatos’ only response was an unidentifiable mix between a grunt and a hum yet Henry rose regardless, from where he had been lying with his head on the flier’s back. “I can’t sleep.”

Thanatos didn’t immediately respond and Henry sighed, attempting to make out the shapes of the rest of the party in the dim natural light. “It’s just all so...”, he cut himself off for all words escaped him, still.

It had been shocking enough to discover Hamnet was alive, yet the story Ripred had told, what must be four or five hours ago, had shaken him to his very core. His gaze darted to Luxa. How long had it now been, since he had given up on finding out what exactly had happened to Hamnet?

Henry squinted and dug in the deepest depths of his mind, for every tattered piece of memory he could find. Memories of Hamnet – younger, paler, skinnier, in a hospital bed. Of people clustered around it, then of slammed doors and screams, of stoic silence. Of desperate search parties, tears, questions, rumors, and hushed whispers. Of angry gazes and orders to be silent whenever his name was mentioned.

“You should try and go back to sleep. You know very well what awaits tomorrow.”

Henry pressed his lips together. Of course, he knew what awaited. They would have to somehow move this entire mess of a randomly thrown-together party through the most dangerous part of the Vineyard of Eyes.

“You knew all that already, didn’t you? Hamnet’s story, I mean.”

Thanatos raised his gaze. “I... I did.”

“Because you were there too.” Honoring Teslas’ request to not disclose what he had told him about Thanatos was one thing, but Henry suddenly felt like he needed answers more than keeping that promise was worth.

The flier’s eyes narrowed. “What... made you think that?”

Henry’s eye darted at Frill who sat on the other side of the clearing, keeping watch, and he lowered his voice even further. “Teslas told me. Quite a long time ago, too. But what does it matter?”

Thanatos twitched. “What it... wait, what exactly did he tell you?”

Henry turned to sit right in front of him and crossed his arms. “A lot. Like how you moved to Regalia after the incident at the Garden. And that you ran away altogether, some three years later.” He narrowed his eye. “But how is that an issue? The real issue is that he even had to tell me. That you didn’t tell me yourself.”

Thanatos stared at him with narrowed eyes and Henry thought he had never looked so much like he genuinely didn’t know what to say. “I... I would have, but... what does it matter? What does any of this matter to you, it happened ten years ago. It has nothing to do with the here and now. Or...”, he hesitated, glimpsing at Hamnet’s sleeping figure, “so I thought, up until we met him.”

Henry clenched his jaw. “What it matters?!” That you trust me, is what matters, he meant to scream yet only pressed his lips together even more. An argument wouldn’t get them anywhere right now. Henry frustratedly uncrossed his arms and averted his gaze to the floor. “We are bonds, right?”

His head shot up as Thanatos didn’t reply instantly. “We are –”

“Of course we are”, the flier assured. “But... I don’t... why is this so important to you?”

“It’s not about what it is!”, Henry shot back as anger boiled up in his stomach. How did the flier not understand? “It’s about the fact that we’re not supposed to keep secrets like that from each other!” He remembered the last time he had asked Thanatos a personal question all too well, back before they had decided to follow the quest over the waterway. But this was not like last time. Last time, they had not been bonds.

“I...” For a second Henry thought something in Thanatos’ amber stare wished to yell back, yet all the flier did was regard him for a moment before he lied back down.

Henry waited a full minute for a reply, but when it became apparent Thanatos would not answer he frustratedly sighed and turned away. Was he the only one of them who understood how a bond was supposed to work?

 _Our life and death are one, we two._ If they didn’t trust each other even with simple stuff like backstories – a sharp thorn of fear pierced his heart and for a moment Henry’s gaze darted back at the flier before he realized his fear was stupid. His mouth curved into a smile and he shook his head. What was he scared of? The flier leaving? His grin widened. Yeah right, that one’s ancient history, Henry thought and sighed, then lied down, curling into a tight ball.

 _Thanatos the flier I bound to you._ The words repeated in his head over and over and Henry found they brought incredible comfort. For the first time ever since they had bonded he consciously made himself aware of the fact that he would never have to be scared of Thanatos leaving ever again.

He would never be alone again.

 _Hey, you can’t just keep that a secret! We are bonds, we’re not supposed to have secrets from each other!_ Henry’s eyes jolted open as he heard his own voice, his own words, spoken... he squinted, what? A year ago? One and a half? He didn’t exactly remember.

 _I did not... mean to offend you, it seemed meaningless at the time..._ Ares’ reply had been hesitant, so much quieter than his own accusation. _I would have told you had it been of any importance, I –_

 _That’s not how that works!_ He winced at the volume of his own voice in his head. _Don’t you get what being bonds means at all?!_

Henry angrily shook his head to chase the memories. Sure, he probably shouldn’t have screamed like that because of a nuisance. But what Thanatos had kept from him was not a nuisance, was it? It was proof of trust. Surely he had the right to expect at least that.

Only five minutes of restless tossing and turning later it became clear Henry was not going to get any sleep anymore regardless so he rose back up. For a moment he looked back at Thanatos, thinking he should maybe at least make sure the flier was not mad at him but his eyes were shut and his breaths seemed even.

Henry sighed and turned away, deciding he could just as well do that in the morning. He would not wake him if he was already sleeping.

“You’re up?” Henry winced as Hamnet tapped his shoulder. “I was about to wake them, actually.”

He turned his head to face him and opened his mouth to offer his help, but then he regarded the middle path they would soon have to take and what lied beyond. His mouth shut and Henry stretched to reach his backpack. “Not yet. There’s something we should do first.”

“From this moment I hand over leadership to the Death Rider, he will tell you what I explored last night and what you are to do.”

Henry eyed Hamnet who stepped back as soon as he had made his announcement, then the somewhat uncertain, visibly nervous, party in front of him.

He sighed, clutched his notebook tighter, and stepped forward. “I only discussed this with Ripred and Hamnet last night because I did not want you to lose any sleep, but this final part of the journey is the most dangerous. The field with the Starshade is near, but to get there, we must traverse the most treacherous part of the Vineyard. As a group this large, it won’t be easy, but we must make an attempt to move with all possible speed.”

Henry exchanged glances with Luxa’s uncle and opened his sketchbook. “Hamnet and I spent some time last night coming up with a formation that should guarantee us the highest rate of survival. We will now show you, but you must do exactly as we say.”

He looked over to Thanatos who sat at Frill’s side, his gaze was unreadable. Henry attempted to shoot him an encouraging smile, see, he wanted to call, I did not forget what lies ahead. Instead, he eyed his notes one last time, then shut his notebook and began instructing the questers.

Henry left Frill at the front with Nike and Aurora on her back. Thanatos was to fly above her, carrying Hazard and Hamnet. He instructed Temp to crawl beneath Frill’s back legs. Flanking the lizard to the right was Ripred, with Boots and Gregor riding on his back. Luxa was to travel with Lapblood on the left. Henry himself would run at the back.

“Why do YOU get to run and I have to ride? I can travel fast enough on my own two legs”, Luxa protested and threw Lapblood a somewhat dismissive glance, who returned it at once.

“Last time I checked, I was the only one who has crossed the Vineyard on foot”, he shot at her. Luxa rolled her eyes and Henry sighed before putting his hands to his hips. “Look, just trust me when I say you will be grateful for Lapblood’s speed later.”

His cousin stared at him for a second, defiantly and challenging, like she had more times than he could count in the past. Before Henry could properly digest the bittersweet sting her gaze brought she reluctantly walked over to Lapblood and settled herself on her back, then reached for Frill to stroke Aurora’s fur.

When he turned to Gregor he expected similar protests, but the Overlander followed Henry’s instructions without complaining. He placed Boots up by Ripred’s shoulder blades and sat behind her without saying a word.

Hamnet fetched Hazard and the two climbed on Thanatos’ back, who cowered behind Frill. “You good?”, Henry threw his way and the bat hesitated only for a split second, then he nodded. “I’ll be fine. You just remember your own senses as you run.”

“Promise.” Henry shot his bond a grin before raising his voice to address the group again. “Alright, the formation’s a go. Now for the rest.” He ignored the confused murmur his announcement brought and reached for his backpack, pulling out a couple loose pieces of fabric. “All who have something – anything – to cover your mouths and noses with, do it now.”

A second wave of surprised murmur ran through the group yet Henry confidently held up the fabric, then tied it around his face to demonstrate what they should do. “Trust me and do it, especially those of you who run.”

Henry had enough cloths for himself, the rats, and Thanatos. Hamnet had covers for him and Hazard, but the two other bats, Frill, Temp, Luxa, Boots, and Gregor were left without anything.

“Use your shirt – your dirty napkins, for all I care! Try to breathe as little as possible during this next part, you hear?” He exchanged glances with Hamnet. “It won’t be possible to hold your breath all the way, I mean, me and Thanatos once made it through in just over a minute, but I don’t expect to break any speed records today. We are many, and most of you have never traversed here, so we will be at least three minutes.”

Henry watched with satisfaction how, after all worried and uncertain looks had been exchanged, Gregor took off his and Boots’ shirts to wrap them around their faces. Luxa watched and hesitated, tugging at her own shirt, and finally ripped off the seam to kit herself out.

“Alright”, he looked around and smiled contently as everyone even remotely endangered had a cover. “I believe the fliers, Temp, and Frill will be fine.” The lizard gave an approving hiss, and Aurora and Nike exchanged glances but finally nodded, as they were tied on.

Henry took a deep breath, preparing to position himself at the back, when he heard the scraping of Lapblood’s claws on the ground. The agitated wringing of Gregor’s hands. The tugging Luxa did at her ripped shirt.

“I know most of you are scared and confused”, he exhaled and spoke, “but hear me – nothing will happen to you as long as you hold on. Whatever it is you do, do not let go of whoever you are riding, keep your heads up, and don’t look back. Okay?”

“And under no circumstances attempt to fight the plants”, Hamnet’s voice sounded from Thanatos’ back and he twirled around to him. “Should we collect their swords?”

Luxa’s hand immediately darted to the handle of hers and Hamnet tilted his head. “Take hers, Gregor has his hands full with his sister. I trust he doesn’t make any stupid decisions, like drawing a blade.”

Luxa gritted her teeth as she was forced to hand her sword to Henry, who stored it in his backpack, together with his own. “Why can we not fight them?”, she asked, still furrowing her brows.

“It would only do more harm”, Hamnet instantly replied. “The only thing I can somehow see working is fire, but it’s best not to fight at all.”

Henry froze with his backpack in hand. He stared at the handle of his own sword before reaching into the bag and fetching his ignifer-dispenser. The clasps shut around the blade at once.

“What are you doing?”, Hamnet raised an eyebrow and Henry stood back up, shouldering his backpack. “Making sure that if someone does need our help, we have some fire to save them.”

“Oh, I nearly forgot, his sword lights on fire. Right, Gregor?” All gazes darted to Ripred who grinned at Henry, and the Overlander on his back shifted uncomfortably. “It did during the battle with the serpents, I saw it, and so did Luxa.”

Hamnet’s eyes grew wide and round. “Excuse me, his sword – what?”

“I’ll show you if I ever need to ignite it. Let’s hope I don’t, though.”

Hamnet looked like he wanted to ask more, even Hazard stared back at Henry with round eyes now, but Lapblood spoke first. “Can we get going?” She shifted her weight from one leg to the other. “All this waiting is only making me more nervous.”

Henry sighed and took his position at the back, then pulled the cloth on his face into place. “We will only travel a short while before I give the command to run. At that point, do not stop until you have reached the field of Starshade.” Henry took a deep breath, “Let us go.”

Frill instantly began moving and led the way down the middle path. Thanatos lifted off after her and took care to stay above her at all times.

The path was narrower although similar-looking to the one that had brought them this far. But as they turned a corner, Henry immediately recognized the unreal beauty of the section he had prepared the group for.

Thanatos picked up speed and darted above their heads into the corridor, in the same moment Henry yelled “RUN!”


	5. Truths

Overall, the group held out decently for the first two minutes or so. Henry could usually hold his breath for more than that by now, yet now that he was running the sweet scent began creeping into every crevice of his body decently quickly. He gritted his teeth harder and stared straight ahead, at the galloping Frill, and attempted to block it out.

The pain from where he dug his nails into the back of his hand fiercely combatted the sickening scent of the Vineyard as Henry spotted the exit.

Somewhere in the back of his head, he registered Thanatos shooting out into the open first. Frill followed, like Lapblood with a giggling Luxa on her back. There was something incredibly amusing about the way the rat threw her into the field of Starshade, Henry grinned yet immediately chased it and cried from the pain his nails sent through his body where he violently dragged them across his arm. The intoxicating mist creeping into his mind retreated at once and Henry picked up speed until he ran beside Ripred.

The rat took a flying leap forward out into the clear, yet at that moment the vigorously laughing Gregor on his back let go of his ears and fell backward. Henry barely prevented a collision and yanked the Overlander up under his arms, away from the already extending vines. He mobilized his last energy reserves and dragged him along the last couple feet, yelling at Ripred to keep going.

When Henry stumbled out into the field of Starshade he tossed Gregor’s limp body forward, the boy landed with his face in the soft grass. “Breathe it”, Henry yelped as he attempted to catch his breath and Gregor twitched before he slowly rose.

We have to count, Henry thought and raised his head to see if everyone had made it before his eye widened and his gaze darted back down at Gregor.

“They are still in here!” The exiled prince twirled around as Ripred yelled, pointing back into the tunnel they had come from. He threw a last glance at the group, then made his decision.

Henry took a flying leap after Ripred who had sprinted back at once, after Boots and Temp. Of course he had let her go, Henry thought as he attempted to keep his spinning head at bay. Of course Gregor had had to let her go.

The longer he stayed in here the harder it became to keep a clear head and Henry let out a frustrated scream, nearly running into Ripred. He gazed up and saw the rat held Boots in his arm. The crawler was clinging to the fur on his back.

Yet apparently, the vines had not given up on their imminent meal. “The exit is sealed!”, yelled Ripred and retreated as the first vine shot at them from the ceiling like an arrow. Henry barely made out the razor-like tip.

His head spun and he frantically dodged three others seeking to impale him. Never had the Vineyard actually attacked him and for a moment Henry believed they had to be lost – until his gaze met Ripred. An image flashed in his head, an image of the rat in battle. And suddenly, he knew exactly what to do.

“Ground coiler! Flaming sword! You spin me! Three seconds!” In one fluent motion, Henry yanked his backpack from his shoulder and drew his sword, then pulled the lever on the ignifer-dispenser. The blade hissed as it ignited in the familiar jet flame and exactly three seconds later Henry twirled around to Ripred, fervently hoping he had understood his vague gibberish.

Yet his concern evaporated at once when he saw the rat’s outstretched paw and the exiled prince hesitated not for a second when he determinately grabbed it.

Ripred immediately yanked him up and Henry dug the soles of his boots into the rat’s side before stretching his sword arm out. There was a heartbeat of silent agreement between them, yet before Henry could properly judge whether that had actually been the ever so slight hint of respect in Ripred’s eyes, the rat began to spin.

The exiled prince did not have to do anything, not aim, not check what he was hitting, not even move, only hold his arm outstretched as the world around him became one fiery blur. Ripred spun faster than Henry had ever spun and they soon became a flaming tornado that effortlessly tore through the curtain of hissing and retreating vines. Hamnet had been right, they didn’t like the fire, Henry managed to think – then it was over.

Ripred stopped so abruptly Henry nearly plummeted to the violently swaying floor, his hand released the sword, and it took his head a full ten seconds to process the world around them, in fact, stood still again.

The moment he regained his senses his gaze met the rest of the party, all stared at them with shock and unbelieving in their eyes. Hamnet held Gregor who Henry presumed had struggled to run after them for Boots. Over the plain hung a deathly silence.

“Me spin!”

They all winced as it was disrupted by the tiny voice of Boots, who now tugged on Ripred’s fur, then on Henry’s shirt, and giggled. “You make me spin!”

The whole party broke into relieved laughter and Gregor wiggled out of Hamnet’s grasp and ran for Ripred. “Boots! Oh Boots!” The rat handed his sister to the distraught Overlander at once. Temp, who had not nearly enjoyed the little adventure as much as the baby girl, crawled out of Ripred’s grip himself. The crawler was visibly shaking.

Henry released the breath he had been holding and leaped to the floor, from where the soles of his boots had dug into Ripred’s side. He stumbled forward, at his still burning sword, then finally let go of the rat’s claw before picking it up.

“Ground coiler...”

Henry darted back to him and to his surprise, among the usual amusement, made out something like genuine appreciation in the rat’s eyes. “Heh, you are full of surprises, aren’t you, lad?”

He didn’t exactly know why, but ever since Ripred had shown up at the colony Henry had not truly felt safe in his presence. Too much he had felt like he was being watched, evaluated, almost. It was ridiculous – last time he had seen the rat he had pushed him at Gorger to stand with his friends, and Henry had wished for nothing more than to thrust his sword up his gloating throat, yet now –

In a single motion, Henry extinguished the flame of his sword. “I know. Isn’t that what it is?”

Ripred laughed. “You could... call it that, I guess.”

Henry put his free hand to his hip and tilted his head. “So, we kicked ass in there, together.” Together. He and Ripred kicking ass... together. Weren’t it such a serious situation, the thought would have Henry laugh. “Does this mean we are outcast-buddies now?”

In his stead, Ripred broke into hoarse laughter. “Oh, oh lad! Do you think it only takes ONE good idea and ONE time kicking ass together to become MY outcast-buddy?”

Henry’s eyes narrowed. “So it’s not out of the picture, we just have to do this more?”

Ripred shook his head, still giggling. “Eh, I should have formulated that differently.” For a moment the evaluating expression flashed in his eyes again. “You’ve got a long way to go, lad, before we can seriously talk about that. You’re on the right trek, yet you’ve got a long way to go. I’ll be keeping an eye on you, kay?”

With that, Ripred turned and strolled towards the others who were taken up with inhaling the Starshade now. Henry kept his eye on him as he kneeled down and did the same. The rat could not possibly know who he was or he would have long given him away, Henry thought and frowned. But in that case, what was the meaning of –?

“Don’t you ever do something like that again, you hear? Not ever, not without me.”

Henry jumped as someone pressed against his back yet recognized the voice at once. He instantly turned and wrapped his arms tightly around Thanatos’ neck. “Hey, what was I supposed to do, let the Vineyard get them? Come on, how low can you sink to let a bunch of salad toppings eat you?”

The flier remained silent yet Henry sensed his unease. He must have been genuinely scared for me, he thought and smiled. “I’m not dying that easily. Have some faith in me, will you?”

Thanatos only sighed, yet what he was so hesitant to say rang in Henry’s ears regardless. How, in his current state, he was very much at risk of dying easily. He pressed his lips together and stood up, turning to the group. “I’m fine, okay? You have to stop worrying so much about me.”

Henry waited not for Thanatos’ response, instead, he picked up speed and made his way across to the others. There was a task at hand, and he would not sit idle watching them work, not when he had gotten them this far.

Hamnet gathered them up in the middle of the field and conducted a quick medical check-up, to make sure nobody was harmed. Then he told them to eat some of the Starshade, to vaccinate against the plague.

“Why do we need it?”, asked Gregor. “None of us has the plague.”

“But we are all no doubt being exposed to it.” Hamnet tilted his head to glance back. “In the cradle lies the cure”. That means the plague breeds here in the Vineyard.” Nobody felt the need to argue.

There goes my reward, Henry thought, chewing on the plants. No vaccine from Regalia required, then. Not that he cared much, at that point.

After they had all eaten a fair amount, Hamnet instructed the group to start plucking the plants. Gregor pulled a roll of something Henry didn’t recognize at first, out of his bag, but when he showed them you could tape the plants together with it, he was all in for it.

The exiled prince pulled out Mys and Gregor handed him the roll of what was apparently called “duct tape” to cut, as he was the only one with a short blade at hand.

Initially, the others all gathered the Starshade from the field, but it soon became apparent the humans would be most useful taping bundles of the leaves together. None of the other creatures had the hands for it.

Boots and Hazard quickly turned out to be of no help with that though, so they soon went back to picking plants. That was, Hazard did, while Boots frolicked around for most of it. Occasionally, she presented them with a few leaves, too.

Aurora and Nike, who, with their injuries, were also fairly limited in what they could do, made sure she stayed safely in the field while Thanatos took to flying rounds over their heads to keep watch.

Henry ended up sitting in the middle, between Luxa and Gregor, handing them stripes of tape, while they bundled the plants and gave them to Hamnet who stacked them to a haystack of sorts.

At first, they worked silently, but after what must have been ten or so minutes, Gregor raised his voice – “Hey, that... that was amazing, you know? How you went back in there to save Boots and Temp.” He awkwardly scratched his nose, “Ripred said you caught and dragged me out as well.”

Henry looked up from his tape and shrugged. “I always wanted an excuse to try my flaming sword in the Vineyard.”

Luxa had overheard him, and asked “How exactly does that work, actually? Because I want one as –”

“You make me spin!” Boots came running at them and cut her off, she had escaped Nike and Aurora and latched onto Henry’s arm, grinning up at him. “You make fire! Me ride rat and you make fire!”

Henry grinned back at her as Gregor awkwardly rose and tried to get Boots off his arm, but she was more determined than he. “Well, looks like you have a fan now”, Gregor sourly smiled and Henry smiled back. “Sure, as long as she lets me do my work.”

With one swift motion, he released Mys and grabbed Boots with both hands. He rose and lifted her above his head, as high as he could. “You like the spinning? You want more?” She screamed in joy and Henry grinned widely before he picked up speed and started spinning her around frantically.

Boots immediately became ecstatic. She squealed and laughed and Henry spun and spun until he was so dizzy he nearly stumbled and fell into the stack of Starshade. He laughed alongside Boots who called “More! More!” over and over and he prepared to pick up speed again when his gaze met Gregor’s face.

The Overlander had watched and oozed visible concern, as soon as he saw Henry had stopped he stretched his arms out to take his sister from him again. “Okay, that’s enough now, Boots, look, I have something for you.” He rummaged through his backpack and placed a pocket mirror in the hand of a furiously protesting Boots. Yet as soon as she saw it, she forgot her anger and it fully occupied her attention. Boots was apparently very fond of making faces at herself.

“I believe this is not to be left out of sight.”

Henry winced as a voice called from behind and turned to spot Hamnet. Earlier, he had seen him talk to Luxa, but now he held in his extended hand Mys.

Henry quickly took a step towards him and grabbed the dagger. “It usually is, but then the baby –”

Hamnet laughed. “I saw. You do have a knack for children, do you not?” Henry opened his mouth to protest, claiming he did, in fact, not enjoy the company of children usually, but Hamnet spoke on – “Despite its purpose, it is an incredible piece of work, if I may say so.”

Henry frowned and opened his mouth to ask what “despite its purpose” was supposed to mean. It was a weapon, what even could its purpose – his eye darted up at Hamnet and he understood. “Oh, it certainly is.”

Luxa’s uncle leaned in to inspect it closer. “Truly remarkable”, he mumbled. “May I see it again for a moment?”

“Oh, you are very right, Hamnet”, Henry heard Ripred’s voice approaching and twirled around to him. “Is that what I think it is?” The rat emerged from behind Luxa’s uncle, leaned over to sniff the dagger, and then raised his head in surprise. “It is! The tooth of a gnawer, and what a tooth!”

Henry grinned proudly, holding the dagger up. It was a nice change from his usual detached arrogance to see Ripred so excited about something. “Not just any gnawer either.” Henry twirled it around, “This is the tooth of no other than King Gorger himself.”

Now he truly had baffled the two, both of them stared at the dagger in disbelief. “Say what now?” Hamnet blurted out and Ripred chuckled. “A dagger from the tooth of Gorger and a sword that lights on fire. You just keep the surprises coming, don’t you?”

“Not planning to stop anytime soon, either.”

“And what does it say here?” Hamnet leaned towards him and Henry’s fingers instinctively traced the carved-in letters spelling “Mys”. He remembered the day he had engraved it well, he had made his fiftieth tally mark then.

“Mys”, Luxa’s uncle read. “That means rat, does it not?”

“It’s the tooth of one, so I thought it was a fitting name.” Henry held it higher so that Ripred could see too. The two inspected it for a while longer, then Hamnet asked for his flaming sword.

“It’s a substance the nibbler Teslas and I developed”, Henry shrugged somewhat casually, “it burns for fifteen minutes and is probably the most ingenious weapon upgrade one could ever design for the life out here.”

“Way to toot your own trumpet”, Ripred grinned but Hamnet cut him off, “I believe he has earned it. I mean”, he pondered, “I remember the man on the mural they called Death Rider held a flaming sword, but I always believed it to be symbolic.”

Henry frowned. “Sym – what? Why would you...? That doesn’t make any sense, what kind of symbolism would it even be?” Before Hamnet could answer, Ripred cleared his throat. “Haven’t we stood around here uselessly for long enough now?”

Hamnet got the hint and excused himself, not without throwing glances back at Henry and Ripred like to urge them to get back to work as well soon.

The two watched him walk over to Luxa and Gregor, whipping out his own knife to begin cutting the tape himself. “Choosing not to fight”, Henry mumbled and shook his head. “Like, I get he regrets what he did, but what will come out of deliberately choosing not to fight?”

“At least he has a choice, you mean?”

Henry twitched around to Ripred and the two exchanged a prolonged, bitter stare until the exiled prince averted his gaze to the floor. “I’d give anything to have a choice again”, he mumbled and angrily wiped at his face. That was the last thing he needed now, to cry in front of Ripred.

The rat remained silent for what felt like ages. Just as Henry meant to give up on receiving an answer and leave to see if he could be useful somewhere, Ripred spoke – “Any... thing, you say?”

“Yeah”, the exiled prince scoffed, then frowned. “What about it? It’s not like you can help me. It’s not like anything or anyone can help me.” He wiped at his face more, yet the tears kept rising despite his best efforts. “I’ll have to accept it at some point, that I’ll be useless for the rest of my life.”

Ripred said nothing and a wave of shame washed over Henry at how pathetic he must look. “Just, let’s just –”

“Not so fast.”

Henry froze mid-movement. He had meant to storm off, yet now turned back to stare at the rat. “Not so fast... what?”

“It depends”, Ripred scratched his back. Henry thought he had seldom seen him so torn. “Your issue lies mostly in perception, not in actual skill, right?”

Henry’s frown deepened. “What about it?”

Ripred sighed and plopped down amidst the field of Starshade. “Your perception’s off because you’ve lost your binocular vision. Yet there’s ways to perceive that do not rely on your eyes, as you may or may not know.”

“I know, echolocation”, Henry pressed his lips together, “but of what use is that if I can’t use it in battle? There’s no way to produce the sound consistently enough.” He frustratedly snapped his fingers.

Ripred’s eyes widened. “You use echolocation? Really?” He stared at Henry for a couple seconds before his eyes trailed to Gregor, “Well, maybe you can talk to the great warrior over there then. I’ve been trying to teach him for a while now, yet he persistently fails.”

Henry followed his gaze and hesitated, then dejectedly shrugged. “What does it matter? What does anything matter? It’s not helping!” He bit his lip, then angrily kicked the grass only to almost fall. “I hate it!”, he screamed yet instantly lowered his voice when both Hazard and Hamnet who stood closest, looked his way.

Ripred remained strangely silent, only looked at him, Henry was once more certain he attempted to judge or evaluate him in some way.

“What now?”, he barked at the rat, “You’re going to help or not? Because if not, I’ll –”

“Oh, I can certainly not help”, Ripred spoke at last, “yet there may be...”, he hesitated and his gaze trailed in the opposite direction from where they had come.

“There may be... what?” Henry dug his sole into the ground and attempted to suppress the suddenly frantic beating of his heart.

“Eh, forget it”, Ripred scoffed. “It would be a waste of time to send you to her. For both of you.”

“To who? What are you talking about?!”

Ripred finally met his gaze again. “Fine. I’ll talk”, he snarled. “Yet do not hold me responsible if this does not work.” He stared into Henry’s eager eyes and sighed. “Know that what I am referring to has never been achieved by a human before, and only by a handful non-humans. Ha, even the first threshold has only been passed by a single human, as far as I’m aware, namely the human who at the current moment stands before me.”

Henry dug his heel deeper into the ground. “First... threshold? What are you talking about? Something that helps me be useful in battle again?”

To his surprise, Ripred laughed. “Oh, oh – useful, he says? My lad”, he still grinned, “if you indeed try your luck at the second threshold, it will make you a little more than USEFUL in battle.”

“More?” Henry listened up. “How... much more?”

“How much more, he asks!” Ripred let out a short laugh. “Oh, how am I supposed to know? Didn’t I just say no human has ever done this? I’m not even sure if it’s possible for one.”

Henry’s head reeled. The rat’s words clustered his mind, one concept constantly beating at his skull. Useful... more than useful in battle. He eyed the rat – the way he talked so cautiously this would most certainly fall into the category “will take up a decade of my life”, then again, Henry took a deep breath, if the reward was right...? And in the end, his head spun from the sobering thought, what choice did he even have?

“That nobody has achieved it yet doesn’t mean it’s impossible!” Ripred winced as Henry spat out the words. “Shoot. I’ll take whatever I can get. Just... shoot!”

For another second Ripred held his gaze silently, then sighed. “Fine. Have it your way. Don’t come crawling back to me if it doesn’t work, though.”

Henry remained silent and the rat spoke on – “I can not help you, lad, yet I know... someone who may. If anyone can, it is her.”

“And where do I find her?”

Ripred hesitated. “Travel to the Firelands. Ask around, those new crawler-friends at the citadel colony you mentioned earlier, or really anyone, for the one named... named... Kismet. Someone’s ought to have heard where she lives.”

Henry frowned. “Kis...met?”, he tilted his head, “Wait, the Firelands? Are those even inhabitable? And you don’t even know where she lives exactly?”

Ripred scoffed. “Lad, you ask too many questions. How am I supposed to know where she lives? Last time I saw her, she spoke of settling down in the Firelands. I picture her smart enough to pick somewhere that is not contaminated with gasses. That is all I can tell you.”

Henry bit his lip. He had little experience with the Firelands, yet if his only hope lied there, he hardly had a choice. “And this... Kismet can teach me to fight again? Like, better than before?”

Ripred broke into a giggle. “Lad, we’re not just talking “better than before”. If you indeed get her to teach you, you will fight unlike any human has ever fought. Unlike any creature, save the handful I mentioned earlier, who are not ragers, have ever fought. If, you know, you succeed.”

“Just watch me.” Henry put his hands to his hips. “You know what – I have a bet for you. I will do what you say, I will go find her, get her to teach me, and learn. I will learn to fight unlike any human has ever fought, and then I challenge you to a re–, I mean, duel. And if I then impress you, we will be outcast-buddies!”

Ripred stared at him for a second, then broke into proper laughter. “Oh, oh, oh... someone’s setting high goals for himself. Well, if that’s what you want, sure! I take that bet.”

He sat up again, scratching his back. “Good luck getting her to agree to this, though.” He eyed Henry with amusement. “To teach...”, he mumbled, “and even to teach a human. I’d give much to witness THAT conversation.”

Henry only pressed his lips together, barely listening. In his head, he was already charting a route from here to the Firelands. Maybe they could fly directly for it, he didn’t really need to see Teslas or the mice again right now.

“That’s enough lazy sitting around on our hides though”, Ripred patted his back so hard Henry jumped and nearly fell. “As Hamnet said, we’ve got a cure to gather. So get at it!” With that, he strolled towards Lapblood, Hamnet, and Hazard, who plucked some of the last remaining Starshade.

Henry’s head was still preoccupied with the conversation to properly take notice of where he was going. He instinctively wandered towards the stack of Starshade that stood taller than he now, Gregor and Luxa were nowhere to be seen.

“Kismet”, he mumbled, fiddling around with Mys’ handle. Kismet. The name had burned itself into his mind, and he internally shook his head at how unpredictable Ripred was. Not even that long ago he had regarded the rat an enemy and now – Henry sighed, now he had been the one who had managed to give him the first hope in what felt like ages. Whatever that was this Kismet could teach him, and however long it would take, Henry knew he had long decided to at least give it an honest try. Maybe it would indeed be worth it, in the end?

He was so lost in thought he only heard the voices when he had nearly reached the stack.

“It can only ever be your choice whether you share the story.”

Henry winced as he made out Hamnet’s voice. Hadn’t he just seen him over with Frill and Hazard?

“You truly think so?”

Henry’s eyes widened even more as the voice of Thanatos replied and he froze in his tracks at once. Hadn’t the flier been out keeping watch?

“Of course I think so.” Henry couldn’t help but think Hamnet sounded angry. “Honestly, I don’t understand why you feel so much guilt for complaining at all.”

Henry knew he should probably not eavesdrop yet now every fiber of his body craved to know what was going on. What Thanatos was complaining about, and especially why he had come with it to Hamnet, not him?

“Back then, in the garden, I... I know it was not really my fault, I saved my bond and...” – “and I did not save mine”, Hamnet cut him off. “She warned me, you know? Persephone, she urged me not to do it, not to open the gates. Oh, had I only listened...”

“She was always the wisest one among the four of us.” Thanatos’ voice was numb. “The only thing I never seized to ask myself was what she wanted with an antisocial loner like me.”

Hamnet laughed. “Don’t we all occasionally ask ourselves that with the person we love most?”

“We do”, the flier concurred, “which is why... why you should forget what I said earlier. I’ve just –”

“No, no, wait”, Hamnet cut him off, “do not say that! You’ve every reason to complain if that is how he treats you.”

“Treats me”, the flier echoed with disdain, “what does it matter how he treats me? It is not... I can not... risk what I have found by being selfish. I...”, he hesitated, “sometimes I have these moments of weakness when I briefly ask myself how it would be if he truly cared for me, yet it is all utterly foolish. So he can treat me as he wants, I’ve nothing... nothing else, don’t you understand?!”

“I...”

“It is of no use!”, Thanatos cried, “it has never been the same after Arya’s death. And it will never be the same again. I should not even be thinking any of this, should be grateful to have found what I’ve lacked the last seven years. He is my reason, the only reason I have...”

“That is what concerns me so!”, Hamnet interjected, “The way you talk... I have known you for nearly all my life, with how close both Arya and I and Persephone and you were, and yet I have never...”, Henry thought he heard a slight quiver in his voice, “never seen you like this. You were always so... so... wasn’t it you who always scoffed at us others for adjusting our lives to please others? And now that you are doing it yourself, you claim it is fair this way?”

“My... life?”, Thanatos hesitated, “That is the point. I have no... life anymore, not like he.”

“You can not be serious!”, Hamnet cried, “At least you must talk to him! Maybe you’re in the wrong, maybe –”

“And what will that CHANGE?”

The silence that followed the flier’s words was deafening. “What will it... change?”, he repeated, “If I complain now, I will only be taking a needless risk. He does not even realize any of this, and all I can hope for is for it to remain that way. If I express it, it will not change the fact that he does not care for me. He remains with me for convenience – or whatever reason, really. I don’t even want to know.”

“But that is not –”

“It is the way it is”, the flier hissed, “I’ve been aimless for so long and now that I’ve found something, someone, to be dedicated to again, you want me to risk that?”

“That is not what a bond is supposed to be!”, Hamnet cried, “And I will never support you being exploited in that manner. I –”, he hesitated, “I understand why you feel the way you do, yet it can not continue like this. I... I know you declined my offer when we last met, seven years ago. Yet now I feel compelled to make it again”, he paused. “I urge you to stay, here with Hazard, Frill, and I. Though I can not offer a purpose, I can offer peace, and a willing soul to talk, should you ever need something.”

A moment of silence that seemed to stretch into eternity followed his words and Henry registered the sound of his own frantic heartbeat, at least three times faster than normal.

“I... I can not. And you know that. For whatever it is, it is still a bond. I will not break it.”

“You may have uttered the words”, Hamnet scoffed, “yet if he is not treating it as a bond should be treated, why should you?”

An even longer moment of silence passed. “I...”, Thanatos hesitated, yet before he could reply, Henry jumped and barely suppressed a scream as he suddenly heard Ripred snarl, somewhere behind him – “Oh no... I knew something like this would – but how did they even get in here?”

Still dazed, Henry turned around and it took his eye a few seconds to adjust before he registered the red wave seeping into the field. They were so close together they appeared as one entity, a thick bloody liquid oozing toward them. The image was not unfamiliar, Henry thought, and between the utter chaos and confusion that now clustered his head, he at last processed it was the cutters.

The next minutes went by him in a blur. Ripred took charge of the situation at once, he sent Boots and Hazard away with Aurora and called to arms. Henry could not move, not even listen. Yet the more he thought over the words he had heard, the less he seemed to understand them.

Then, Ripred had his shoulder and directed Henry towards the others, wildly gesticulating as he distributed positions. A five-point arc, Henry registered him yell, with Ripred himself at the tip, and Gregor, Lapblood, Hamnet, and Frill to the sides. Nike with Luxa and Henry with Thanatos from the air.

The exiled prince blinked and finally awoke from the strange daze as he heard his position.

“You ready?”

He jumped around and stared at Thanatos behind him who had asked. He hesitated for a moment longer than he probably should have, then nodded.

After both Hamnet and Frill had assumed fighting positions, as well as Gregor and Lapblood, Temp sat on the haystack of Starshade, looking as determined as the rest of them.

Henry mounted up at last and ignited the second ignifer pellet he had loaded before exchanging a glance with Luxa, already on Nike’s back. He managed a reassuring grin – “Let’s do this.” She returned it and nodded.

“Hold your positions as long as you can before you fall back”, Ripred yelled from his place at the point. “When we reach the stack, circle around. Don’t save each other, save the plants! Remember, it’s the Starshade we need. Defend it at all costs! Defend the Starshade!”

At all costs... The phrase rang in Henry’s ears for a moment but before he could linger on it, Thanatos was in the air. “Let’s show the cutters why they should be scared of us, as they are, ever since the citadel”, the flier mumbled and the exiled prince nodded, like in a trance.

It’s... now or never, Henry angrily shook his head. It all, their whole mission, perhaps the life of all warmbloods in the Underland, depended on them now. He could not afford any distractions. He had to... had to... focus. Henry clenched his teeth and gripped his sword, determinately chasing all confusing thoughts. “Let’s fight.” And then they fought.

Yet it was not enough. Henry barely registered what was happening, too taken up by the battle to understand they had no chance of winning.

The scene unfolded before him like in slow motion, the cutters overrunning the fighters on the ground, hacking away at the Starshade. Henry and Luxa fought valiantly, as did everyone on the ground, even Hamnet and Frill – but it was pointless. The last Henry saw of the relentlessly marching mass of cutters were the remains their party had not killed entering the Vineyard, vividly demonstrating what would have happened to them, had they not done exactly as they did.

Thanatos and Nike landed only moments later, exchanging unbelieving glances. Henry’s head spun and his arm with the still burning sword hung limp.

Everyone had assembled around what had been the Starshade-stack. “It’s gone”, Gregor stammered after a minute of unbelieving silence, “The Starshade is gone. The cure is gone!”

“All gone”, Ripred mumbled. “It’s all gone now.”

Henry attempted to silence his own screaming thoughts as he mounted down and extinguished his sword. What did this mean? What... what would happen now? His gaze wandered over what had remained of the group. They were all bruised and disheveled, with cuts all over their legs and arms. He felt no pain, yet even he had somehow taken a couple cuts, so had Luxa.

It took the shocked, battered, scared, and tightly huddled together group a full minute to realize Frill and Hamnet weren’t among them. Surrounded by dead ants, Frill’s body lied sprawled across the field, her skin scored with hundreds of cuts. And there, Temp hovered over something at the edge of the jungle. Henry froze as he recognized the form on the ground as Hamnet.

“Uncle!”, Luxa cried, and then she was sprinting across the field towards him. Henry froze at once, staring after her. He could not move.

There were so many things he had wanted to tell and ask Hamnet. He had presumed him dead for so long and only now, that he had found out he was not dead after all, he would truly die. He had not even told him it was he, Henry. That he was alive, that they were both alive, that –

His legs gave way and he collapsed where he stood, burying his face in the crook of his arm to hold in the tears. He couldn’t cry, not now, not in front of the others, they would only ask why he wept for someone he had barely known, and how could he ever explain...?

“I will cry later”, he whispered, voice muffled with uncried tears as if Hamnet on the other side of the plain could hear him. “I will cry later, I will. And I will not forget you.” It was all he could do, staring at the group that had assembled around Hamnet now. Luxa’s body quivered as she cried and there had seldom been a time he had wanted to embrace her more than now. But of course, he couldn’t.

Then someone pressed against his back and the exiled prince recognized Thanatos. The flier trembled, attempted to hide, for Henry to not see his face. “He would not have wanted us to cry”, he whispered, and in that moment Henry allowed himself to forget everything he had said earlier. He only wrapped his arms around his neck tightly, this time to conceal his tears.


	6. Whatever it takes

Henry watched Luxa, Temp, and Gregor climb onto Nike’s back like in a trance, around an hour and many realizations later. His head spun so badly he could barely keep himself standing. It was not the Starshade... the cure... Thanatos was... What had he meant by... What had they all meant... they all, the plague...?

Henry winced as he bit down on his lip a little too hard. It was all too much, all that clustered his head, yet as he watched the black and white bat fly a circle above their heads, with the kids on her back, it strangely cleared.

A plague as a weapon... something in him thought if anyone could have conducted this, it was Solovet. Except now the weapon had escaped her control, and everything depended on Luxa convincing the council to provide the antidote like they had the sickness. To the rats, and to him.

Luxa had assured him their agreement stood – if they had the antidote in Regalia, they would give it to the gnawers and to the Death Rider, for his services at the Vineyard. He saw her dire face as she had promised.

“Fly you high!” Henry winced as Ripred called after Nike and hesitated before shouting his own “Fly you high!”

“Run like the river, Ripred! Fly you high, Death Rider!”, Gregor replied, Luxa was still as stone. Not that the exiled prince could blame her.

He and Ripred stood side by side and watched them disappear out of sight, back into the Vineyard, before the gnawer turned to him. “So, Lapblood and I better get back now and spread the word. What about you?”

Henry slowly turned to him yet drew a blank. The Starshade... the vaccine... a weapon... Thanatos and his... No. The exiled prince angrily squinted and jumped when the flier appeared beside him. “I...” His gaze remained on the rat and suddenly something surfaced from the murky depths of his mind, something that made his objective crystal clear... “Kismet.”

“Oh”, Ripred grinned, “so you actually wish to try your luck with her?”

Henry nodded grimly, but Thanatos at his side voiced a confused – “With whom?”

“Oh, did he not tell you?”, Ripred eyed the flier and then Henry, who shook his head. “When was I supposed to? We talked for almost as long as it took for the cutters to attack.”

“Oh, fair.” Ripred stared at him intensely for a few heartbeats but was interrupted by Lapblood who called to depart before any other unforeseen incidents.

“Well, in that case”, Ripred eyed Thanatos, “let’s give you the short version. Lad here asked me what to do about his perception issue, and well, turns out I’d something for him to try. For that, you must travel to the Firelands and seek out a hermit gnawer named Kismet. If anyone can help ever fix this issue of his, it is her. And if she can not – well”, he grinned sourly, “then nobody can, I’m afraid.”

“Wait, hold on”, Henry’s head jerked in his direction and his brow furrowed, “Kismet... she is a RAT?” He had not even questioned her species so far, and suddenly felt insanely stupid for it. What else could an “old friend” of Ripred’s even be?

“A rat...”, Thanatos muttered, “The... Firelands, then. Though... are you certain she is trustworthy? I’ve my doubts in allowing a rat to teach you if I am being perfectly honest”, he turned to Henry who nodded.

“Agreed. I... He never mentioned she was a rat”, the exiled prince pressed his lips together. What did this mean for his decision? He squinted and shuddered, would he really...?

“And here comes the dilemma”, Ripred snarled in something like amusement, “So, lad, it’s time to show me. Show me just how serious you’re about this. What’s more important, hm? Your fighting skills – or your prejudice?”

“It’s not prejudice, rats can not be trusted”, Thanatos sounded resolute. “You should know that better than most.”

“I mean”, Ripred laughed, “I can’t argue with that. I guess in that case, this is where I find out how much you all trust me, then. Because trust me, she’s less allegiance with our kin than even I. And that should mean something.”

Henry and Thanatos exchanged glances. The flier looked concerned as ever, yet the exiled prince himself knew, as much as the thought of seeking out a rat of all species to teach him displeased him, he hardly had a choice. Not with how the stakes were at the moment.

“I’ll go”, he muttered at last and found something like an unidentifiable glimmer in Ripred’s yellow eyes.

“But you...” – “I must”, Henry cut Thanatos off. “You said it yourself, back on the island. That I’m not doing enough, that I should...”, he gritted his teeth, “that the solution will not fall from the sky. And you were right, it will not. So I must grasp any straw I can get.”

There was hardly anything Thanatos could say to that.

“Excellent”, Ripred grinned and nodded, “but now go, shoo! Go and try her, and once you’re at it, tell her I send my regards.” He fell to all fours to join the impatiently waiting Lapblood, then turned back again. “Or actually, no, don’t mention me. It’ll make it a little less likely she’ll tear you to shreds instantly. But only a little.”

Henry and Thanatos watched the two rats disappear through the larger tunnel on ground level the cutters had created and Ripred’s “I can’t be held responsible for any Kismet-induced casualties, by the way!”, was the last thing they heard of them.

Then they exchanged another glance. “We’re... doing this?” The exiled prince couldn’t keep his voice from sounding somewhat cautious.

“If it is what you want...”, the flier stared at the floor and a shiver suddenly ran down Henry’s spine, “we do it.”

The flight to the citadel felt longer than usual to Henry, though no cutters bothered them. They were probably busy figuring out where the battalion they had sent to the Vineyard had vanished to.

He told Thanatos he would lie down to sleep, yet sleep was not an option. Not with how he had still not sorted out any of the impressions of before and after the battle.

Henry’s face pressed into dark fur, and though the sensation was familiar and should bring comfort, his eye remained wide open. _It will not change the fact that he does not care for me._ He heard the flier’s voice utter the seemingly crystal-clear words, yet Henry spent a full five minutes pondering on what Thanatos could have possibly meant that made... sense.

His brow furrowed, it was... how had he ever even come to say that? What reason could he possibly have to... _He remains with me for convenience – or whatever reason, really. I don’t even want to know._ His teeth gritted as the words sunk in, and he sensed their sharp sting.

It was... not true, he adamantly repeated to himself. But why is he... saying it, then? Henry’s eye jolted open. Is this all the faith he has in me? He attempted to suppress the shaking of his hands. Is this all he thinks I’m willing to invest? I’m... good for? He had... proven it often enough, had he not?

The exiled prince squinted, he had proven his loyalty and affection for the flier often enough. What is it he even wants from me – Henry angrily tugged at his sword belt. What was he supposed to do? What had he... done wrong?

He allowed the thought to sink in and suddenly flashed back to their argument last night. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so angry, he thought and bit his lip. Then again... was Hamnet right when he claimed it was okay for him to keep his history from his own bond?

Or is it that he wants it to be true? The thought clawed its way up into Henry’s mind and his lips pressed together, is it all he wants us to be? Did he never want this relationship to become more than convenience?

He squinted, is that why he keeps saying bonding didn’t change anything? Because he didn’t... want it to have changed anything?

The questions clogged Henry’s mind, buzzing louder than a hundred Buzzers, and the exiled prince wished nothing more than to press his hands to his ears and scream at the top of his lungs. Scream it all out, all the fears and confusions and worries, yet... what was he supposed to say? _Do you regret bonding to me because you never wanted our relationship to become more than convenience, or do you just not think I’m capable of caring for you?_

Henry nearly scoffed.

_Why was it okay for you to talk to Hamnet about your past but not me? Who was Persephone? Who Arya? Was the garden part of why you went into exile? Why is it so hard for you to... trust me?_

Henry jerked up from where he lied and Thanatos’ head twitched, “you okay? Was it a dream?”, yet the exiled prince could not answer. _Trust me,_ the words rang in his head over and over. _Trust me. Trust me. Trust... me._

“I’m fine.” He had no clue as to how he mustered up the strength to respond, but apparently, it was enough for the flier. _Trust... me._

Henry squinted and consciously relaxed his rigid muscles. That... must be it, he thought. _For whatever it is, it is still a bond. I will not break it._ The memory of the words hurt more than all previous realizations combined. It is he, Henry forced himself to think, who only stays with me because he has no other choice. _I urge you to stay, here with Hazard, Frill, and I._

You wanted to say yes, did you not? Would you have said yes, had they not... He stiffened and shuddered in disgust with himself as for a brief moment he found himself relieved Hamnet had not survived to repeat the offer.

No, he adamantly thought, he could not think like that. He had never wanted this to happen. Yet – Henry squinted in overwhelming shame – had I been forced to choose between losing Thanatos and losing Hamnet...?

Enough, he internally screamed. He did not even know if he would have repeated the offer. If Thanatos would have accepted. Would... you have accepted? He thought the words so clearly he was almost surprised he could not hear them coming from his mouth.

A wave of much too familiar fear engulfed him and Henry blinked to keep the tears from rising. What... had happened?

He flashed back to the last months, the time since they had bonded, since Thanatos had cowered over him in fear after he had lost his eye. Something... happened, Henry exhaled, suppressing the uprising panic. Something... but what? He searched his frantic mind, yet drew a blank. There was nothing, nothing he could think of, at least. And that, Henry swallowed, relaxing his grip on Thanatos’ fur, was the worst part.

I cannot... he thought, pressing his lips together harder, quelling the imminent tears. I cannot... lose him. Not now, not ever. Not anymore.

For a second the image from his last nightmare flashed in his head. He hadn’t had any nightmares ever since they had left the island, yet once in a while the image of Thanatos behind the glass wall, staring at him with that empty amber as he drowned, would appear before his inner eye, and it stung unbearably every time. Now, to his own horror, he suddenly asked himself if this was ever something that could truly happen.

Angrily, Henry chased the thought at once. Of course not. What was he thinking? He had probably only dreamed of it because the fear existed somewhere deep inside his gut, but it was groundless. It was... it had to be. For, it was... fine now, was it not? The flier was right here, and he clearly worried for him. Henry desperately pressed his face into his fur. He was here, and he would not ever give him a reason to leave. Not now, not ever. Not anymore.

As much as he wanted, he had no chance at suppressing the tear from rolling down his cheek.

Just as Henry could no longer bear the silence the flier shot out of a familiar tunnel into a giant cave with a fortress-like structure on the far end.

Zick and his friends greeted the “Wielder of Light and Rider of Death”, as they had modified his name, and his flier with utmost hospitality. Henry had a feeling the crawlers’ admiration for him here had only grown the longer he had been absent. They were welcomed with ready supplies and gifts, the crawlers even carried it all outside to not exclude Thanatos who could not fit through the entrance.

Yet when Henry asked if they had heard of a gnawer named Kismet who supposedly lived further north in the Firelands, all happy chatter abated at once. “Do not go to gnawer, do not go”, Zick mumbled at last, and the three friends he had brought to keep them all company retreated a little.

“Listen, she’s the only reason we are even here”, Henry grumbled as he stuffed the materials and supplies they had given him into his backpack. “Nothing personal”, he added after a moment of hesitation.

Zick and his companions exchanged glances and Henry feared they would make a scene of it again, yet they only began talking to each other in their own language. Their conversation went on for several minutes and Henry was about to interrupt when Zick pushed one of his friends at them. “Tack can help, Tack can.”

Henry and Thanatos listened with growing dread as the crawler described a path leading down from here, and eventually to the Firelands. Apparently, the Shiners and Pinchers they traded with occasionally told rumors of a hermit gnawer who had settled down in the crater of an inactive volcano, on the far east of the Firelands. “Avoided and rejected she is by most, rejected”, he whispered, “those who cross her path meet an evil fate, meet an evil fate.”

Henry and Thanatos exchanged glances, yet did not interrupt when Tack pointed them to the tunnel named “Path of Styx”. “Follow it until the stone turns black, stone turns black”, he spoke with a quivering voice, “may you live to return, may you.”

“Oh, we will, don’t worry.” Despite his confident tone, Henry had to consciously unclench his jaw after the crawler finished up his tale. This will be worth it, he told himself as they said their goodbyes to the crawlers shortly, to look for the Path of Styx.

They followed the tunnel on the far left leading out of the cave for half an hour until it forked, from there they took the right path, as Tack had instructed. Soon, the tunnel began declining at an alarming rate, from what Henry saw he would barely be able to traverse it on foot.

It took more than two hours of travel and much careful navigation from Thanatos until the angle at which the path descended decreased to the point where Henry believed he would be able to traverse it on foot. At the same time, he noticed a difference in the way the walls reflected the light from his torch and noticed the material had changed.

“It’s volcanic rock, obsidian, I believe”, Thanatos answered when the exiled prince asked. “Tack spoke of black walls. We must be close.”

“I guess we’re officially in the Firelands then”, Henry mumbled and the flier nodded, proceeding with even more caution. The exiled prince couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of curiosity rise in him. He had taken short trips to the outskirts of the Firelands when visiting the Fount, though never had had the opportunity to traverse further in. Apparently, not only was most of the land contaminated with toxic fumes, but dangerous and partially unknown creatures had made the highly volcanic caves their home as well.

Yet he had little time to indulge in his fascination. Only ten minutes later the tunnel began to narrow more and more, and Thanatos was quickly forced to land as it became too tight for him to properly fly. They settled in the last semi-wide part of the path and stared down the only tunnel that led forward, it was at best three feet wide.

“I cannot continue from here”, the flier sighed, “it is much too narrow. Should we turn back and take that side path we crossed five minutes a–”

Yet the flier never finished his sentence. Henry cried from both pain and shock as a strong blow swiped him off his feet. Before he could fall, it catapulted him forward and he crashed into the opposing wall. He saw stars for a second and registered Thanatos’ high pitched cry, then gasped for air as his lungs were forcibly emptied.

Only when he regained his senses, he realized what still pressed him into the wall by the throat was a type of fleshy whip. A... tail.

Henry writhed and attempted to scream yet the tail’s owner held him in place relentlessly. In the gleam of the torch he had dropped on impact he barely caught sight of Thanatos. His leg was fixated by a type of rodent, so much Henry made out, yet before he could properly look, the torch hissed and went out. He barely heard the last drops of fuel hitting the floor.

A thorn of fear pierced his heart as he found himself in utter darkness. Where did the attacker come from? And how had they snuck past Thanatos’ sense of hearing? He desperately choked as the tail around his throat tightened. He had to do... something... something. Henry’s hand automatically darted down at Mys’ handle. In the blink of an eye he drew the blade, yet heartbeats before it could land, the tail released him.

The exiled prince dropped to the floor and coughed violently, even let go of Mys to feel his own throat.

“A flier and a human down the Path of Styx...”

His head jerked up when the unfamiliar voice sounded for the first time. Henry thought it strangely reminded him of Thanatos when they had first spoken. It held the same type of hoarseness like the owner was not used to speaking.

“I can only presume you were in search of death. It is the only thing you will find here.”

Henry cleared his throat and coughed one last time before squinting to make something out in the nigh-unbroken darkness. When his eyes had adjusted as much as they ever would, he spotted the cowering shape of a rodent in the mound of the tunnel from where they had come.

Female, by the voice, and too large for a nibbler. Henry’s mind reeled as he tried to sort out the little information he could gather from observations. Yet his vision did not function well enough in the given sparse lighting to make out more.

“We’re looking for... you”, he hesitantly called and slowly rose to his feet. If she was not a nibbler, she was a gnawer, and how big, honestly, were the chances of meeting a different female gnawer than the one they were looking for, in this remote no-mans-land?

“For... me?” Her shape shifted yet Henry could not make out if she relaxed or assumed attack position. “Ha!” Her following laugh was hoarse and spiteful. “And who set you on the suicide mission to look for ME? Have the gruesome rumors I spread among the locally resident species not sufficed to secure my peace and quiet?”

“The truly determined will not be stopped by rumors.” Henry’s response was only met with another laugh. “Or actually”, he inched forward to where he more sensed than saw the shape of his torch, “we’re looking for Kismet. However much of a difference that makes.”

Henry froze in his tracks as he perceived her wince at the name. “For...”, she drew back, at last releasing Thanatos’ leg. He sensed the flutter of his wings to his left. “Are you okay?”

“Looking for... destiny, are you?” Henry absentmindedly nodded in the flier’s direction and couldn’t help but shiver at the overwhelming strain her voice suddenly oozed, “And what could someone like you ever want of her?”

It took the exiled prince a few heartbeats to realize the word “kismet” meant destiny. He took another step at his torch before he spoke – “Her help, what else?”

He barely had enough time to scoop up his torch before the rat broke into a proper laughing fit. “Help? MY help? Oh, you must be utterly insane. Can he still not accept I wish to be left at peace”, she mumbled the last part to herself, then raised her voice again, “Now LEAVE – before I decide to forget battle is an art and make it messy.”

Henry opened his mouth yet closed it again, deciding he could ask who “he” was later. “And what if I refuse?” She remained silent and his hand tightened around the hilt of the torch. We’ll see who is more stubborn, he thought and narrowed his eye. “Listen, I’ve already gone out of my way to come here, do you think I did so for fun?”

“Oh, he has spirit.” Who he presumed was Kismet, released something like a mix between laugh and scoff. This time Henry was certain her silhouette relaxed as she leaned on the wall. For a moment an image of Ripred doing the same, back when they had first met, near the spinner headquarters, flashed before his inner eye and Henry tensed.

“Then”, she audibly sighed, “will you be so kind as to share your apparent reason at last, so that I can officially inform you I cannot, in fact, help, and get back to my business?”

For the first time, something like anger boiled up in Henry and he pressed his lips together. “Right.” But before I do that, he raised the torch, I’ll even the odds a bit, he thought, and fumbled with the pocket that held his fire stones. The torch re-lit with a sizzling flame and he winced when Kismet instantly darted back, into the shade.

Henry hesitated, then held the torch higher, yet she was concealed by the entrance of the tunnel she had come from. All he could catch was the outskirt of light fur and the pink tip of a tail.

He and Thanatos exchanged glances. “Her eyes must not be used to the light”, the flier mumbled and stretched his wings, “wait, will you?”

Henry disliked the thought of waiting for her to draw closer on her own accord, yet if it heightened his chances with her... “Hey, will you hear me out now, or what?”, he called in her direction, “Sorry for how I like to actually SEE my conversation partners.”

Despite the dripping sarcasm in his voice, his opponent did not react immediately. She remained silent for so long Henry’s patience had nearly run out, and only when he’d already lifted a leg to step closer, she spoke – “My... help, you say”, her voice was hushed. “I would like to know why, of all whom you could have sought out instead, you came for me, pup.”

The exiled prince raised the torch and frowned, then opened his mouth to inform her he was not a pup, yet all previously thought up words escaped him when she then stepped forth, into the light.

Kismet was not overly large for a rat, only slightly taller than he, but maybe it only seemed that way, Henry thought, for she was awfully emaciated. Her clumped, messy, and visibly little cared-for fur only undermined her haggard shape, it stood in all directions and he saw the acute points of her shoulder bones and ribs.

Her whole body was covered in countless scars, varying in shape, size, and gruesomeness. They seemed to document a perilous life, though the closer Henry looked, the more he asked himself how she had ever even received some of them. What kinds of battles had she fought that left her with awfully systematic-seeming burn marks? Her paws and tail were tightly wrapped in stained, tattered bandages – though, his gaze trailed down to his own hands, it seemed to be a protective rather than medical measure.

Yet even more striking than any of the scars was the color of her fur itself. Henry had never seen a rat with such light fur, he had to squint and look closer to understand it was of an extremely pale grey.

He had never... Henry’s eye suddenly widened, he stared at Kismet and found himself taken back to... _It seems like Splintleg found new meat for me, a human pup and a spiritless veteran. This’ll be fun._

No. Henry squinted and shook his head, they maybe shared the same size and posture and their fur was definitely of similar color – yet that of Splintleg’s late champion Sizzleblood had been of a more saturated grey. Kismet’s looked almost bleached out by time. Still, he tilted his head. For all their similarities, they could have been sisters.

Before Henry could step closer, Kismet herself moved. She had presumably adjusted to the light at last and slowly raised her head to, how he thought, look at him. Yet when he first saw her face Henry winced and nearly dropped his torch.

“Nothing for the faint-hearted, I’m afraid.” He thought she was grinning, but could not be certain. Not with how... little of her face was left.

Henry knew it was impolite to stare, yet he could not tear his gaze away from her... It is a scar, it flashed in his mind, a scar... not unlike my own. Except the right half of her face was not a bite, it was a burn mark – exposed, charred flesh that had not grown fur in years... or decades.

Henry barely suppressed a shudder. With all the gruesome injuries and mutilations he had seen in his entire life, he had never seen anything like that. Even what he saw when he looked into a mirror seemed harmless in comparison.

Is this why Ripred sent me to her, it flashed in his mind and his hand darted up to his own face, because she is missing an eye like me? But no – Henry squinted and fixated her other eye. It had been left untouched by whatever had caused the scar, yet it did not look at him, only stared past him blankly. He thought the iris had been reddish at some point, yet now it seemed clouded, almost bleached out, like her fur.

Henry frowned, preparing to take a step closer. Was she...? Yet the moment he moved, she moved as well and he nearly dropped the torch again when her tail whizzed down like a whip, inches in front of his foot.

“Do not assume just because I look like I can not see you, I can actually not see you, pup.”

Henry stumbled backward and nearly hit his back on the wall. “Are you...”, he squinted again and ignored even the “pup”, “... can you... see me?”

Kismet sat up again, retrieving her tail as quickly as she had extended it. “No, I am not blind, if that is what you meant to ask. Not yet at least.” She shook her head, “The left eye sees, but not in the distance. As for whether I can see you... of course I can. You are right there...”

Before Henry could react she had fallen to all fours and approached, then extended her tail and moved it through the air, following Henry’s shape exactly. She brushed his shoulders, the top of his head – avoided the torch and finally the tips of his feet, without a single moment of uncertainty or hesitation.

Then she turned to Thanatos, who seemed equally aghast, and did the same with him. “Ha”, she laughed as she turned from him again, “your wings span what, seventeen feet? I’m surprised you even made it this far, with how narrow it gets. Not bad.”

“I’m used to it”, the flier fixated her from narrowed eyes.

“You surely must be.”

Henry stared at the two yet failed to formulate words for what incredible feat she had just so nonchalantly demonstrated. If she was so short-sighted she was nearly blind, how had she... He could count the times he had been at a loss of words on the fingers of a single hand, and he almost felt no shame admitting now was one of them.

“How... how are you doing that?”

Kismet sat back down, relaxed as ever. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“Actually, I would.”

“Oh?”

Henry took a deep breath – “It’s... if I’m not gravely mistaken, it’s what you asked earlier. Why I came here. What I need your help with.” His fingers trembled as he took the torch into the left hand and reached the right one up to brush off his eyepatch. “We’re not so different, it seems.”

Kismet narrowed her remaining eye and drew closer until her face was mere inches from his. When she had apparently gotten close enough to see his scar, she snorted and turned. “We are very different, pup. Your eye problems don’t justify comparing yourself to me.”

Henry pressed his lips together. “First of all, I’m not a pup”, he reprehended, “but honestly, I don’t care how similar or not we are, as long as you help me with this “eye problem”, as you call it!”

Kismet twitched around, her eye widened in something like surprise. “Hold on... he did not send you all the way here in the faulty assumption I would... TEACH you?”

“If by “he” you mean Ripred, then yeah, he did.”

The scarred rat was so surprised she remained silent for a second, then broke into vigorous laughter. “Oh, by everything you ever held dear – you must be joking!”

“Do I look like I’m joking?” Henry put his hands to his hips. “Whatever happened with you two, I couldn’t care less, okay? All I’m looking for is something that will...”, he bit his lip, then clenched his fists, “fix THIS!” He flailed at his face. “And I’m not talking about the physical part!”

She remained silent for so long Henry once more became impatient, yet she once more beat him to breaking the silence. “Ripred, Ripred – when will he learn to keep his snout out of my business?”

“When crawlers learn to fight”, Henry mumbled and Kismet snorted, then broke into laughter. “You could say that, oh, you certainly could.” Her eye narrowed and she inspected him for a moment, “So you say he sent you here... to learn from me?”

Henry held her gaze determinately. “He did. And if you planned to bring up the whole “this has never been achieved by any human ever” argument, save it, because I’ll respond the way I did when HE said that.” Henry crossed his arms and stared right at her, “Just because it’s never been done before, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.”

Kismet froze and gazed at him with an unreadable expression, though the exiled prince for the first time felt like he had genuinely gotten through to her. “Oh, is that so?”

“You know it is.”

They exchanged a prolonged glance and Henry asked himself if it was a good idea arguing about something being possible or not of which he didn’t even exactly know what it was.

“Is... that so”, Kismet slowly repeated, “fantastic...”, she mumbled, “Ripred sends me a human to teach, a HUMAN, pah! But of course... it is Ripred. You can present the most logical, sensible, objectively convincing arguments and he will still get his way, oh he will. Even now he is still seeking to mess with my life...” She turned to him, “Let me guess, he told you to not hold him responsible, should this trip not work out for you?”

“Well, I mean, that’s Ripred for you”, Henry shrugged, and Kismet laughed. “He is an insufferable control freak who can not take defeat, so yes – that is Ripred for you.” There was little Henry could say to that.

“Seldom has anyone described Ripred so accurately in so little words”, Thanatos mumbled beside him and Kismet laughed again. “That impresses you? Well, I’ve more in store then.”

She approached Henry again and tilted her head at him. “So – I bet he pretends to hate your guts, Ripred, yet there’s also that occasional glimmer of pride when he looks at you, is it not so?” She waited not for Henry to even close his agape-standing mouth. “You...”, she began circling him, “spirited, determined if needed, though can probably be insanely flakey, when the stakes are lower.”

Thanatos let out a short laugh and Kismet smiled. “Extremely conceited, self-centered, and attention-seeking, sure – but since when are those considered flaws out here...”, she laughed. “You wish to be the center of attention, to always be great at what you do. It is perhaps the most important thing for you, to be... good, and not just at something, at everything.”

Henry felt unease yet also excitement rise in his chest as he followed her with his eye. His mind reeled with questions, but she gave him not a moment to ask them. Instead, she continued what felt more and more like an evaluation.

“Yet still, you are a... survivor. You came here on a whim, most likely against all advice, well-knowing it would probably mean your end because Ripred surely told you – and yet you came. Rulebreaker, thrill-seeker, stubborn, thinks himself above all boundaries”, she rattled off adjectives, “You follow your instincts, always attack first and ask later, if even. And then again”, she tilted her head, “you are a leader, someone who expects everyone to respect him, and if they don’t, you find a way to make them.” She came to a halt right in front of him, “How’s that so far?”

Henry stared at her, for the second time in the confinements of a single conversation, speechless. Kismet took his silence as a sign of approval. “Pretty accurate, I take. So”, she grinned at him sourly, “for the love of my sweet solitude, why would YOU ever need help, especially from someone like me?”

It took Henry considerable effort to close his agape-standing mouth. “Y... you... how did you –?”

“How did I know all of that?” Kismet shook her head, “It’s fairly simple, actually. You know, if you look close, people in themselves can always be divided into recognizable parts, indicated by certain behavior. In the... past I have spent much time studying how those pieces fit together.”

“So... what you are trying to say is that people are predictable?”

Kismet stared at him for a moment, then grinned. “You do have a way of oversimplifying things, do you not?”

“Same could go for you and overcomplicating them”, he mumbled, and Kismet chose to blissfully ignore it.

Yet just as he had opened his mouth to ask when a hermit like her had had the opportunity to study behavior she interrupted him again – “All insufferable control freaks, eye problems, and behavioral patterns aside... you were leaving, were you not?” Henry jumped as she suddenly fell forward into what seemed way too much like an attack position.

He squinted at Thanatos, it took his brain a moment to process they had just gone from almost friendly chatter to what could turn into a fight any second. And as much as he hated the thought, from the bit of her fighting skill they had seen earlier, they stood no chance.

“But I –”

“It is enough now”, she hissed, “You’ve had your fun, and a neat story to tell Ripred about your visit here, but you should make yourself aware I can kill you in more than a dozen ways, and unless you skedaddle now, your flier will be compelled to collect you from the floor. Piece by piece.”

Henry knew her stance and hostile expression should diminish his determination, yet to even his own surprise it was fueled instead. It is... a test, he thought, firmly holding her gaze. A test, it is all a test. The questions, the evaluation, and this attempt at getting rid of me.

“Henry, we should –” He ignored Thanatos and instead took a deep breath, straightening out his back. Whatever this test was, he would not fail it. Not when he had come this far. “Look, if you doubt how serious I am about this, you’ve got another think coming.” He narrowed his eye, “I am not leaving here without getting my way. For whatever it takes.”

Kismet didn’t move. She only stared in his direction, how Henry thought pensively. “Is that so... you truly believe you can out-stubborn me? Well, in that case, YOU have another think coming.” She at last grinned again, “Not even Ripred could do that.”

Henry pressed his lips together yet retreated not an inch. Simply demanding to get his way from her was clearly not the solution. The more he watched and interacted with her, the more Kismet reminded him of Ripred. They were both highly intelligent, resolute, and stubborn, and if he had learned anything about dealing with Ripred, then that stubbornness was never the way.

“No, I don’t.” His response baffled her as this time she was the one who remained silent, allowing him to continue – “I don’t need to. You don’t strike me as someone who wouldn’t be up to the challenge of potential impossibility, so I just need to give you a... reason. Something that makes it worth your while. And”, this time it was Henry who took a step towards her, “as you seem to know so much about me, do you really think I will rest until I have found something?”

Kismet remained silent for maybe a minute, only now Henry patiently waited. She apparently liked to think before she spoke.

“So, you aren’t as stupid as you seemed”, she shook her head, “Fine, I will give you that. But still –”, she took a step forward as well until they were face to face, and Henry spotted a certain glimmer in her eye when she got close enough to see him – “If you truly wish to try your luck at finding me a reason... then you will have to find the impossible.”

With that, she turned around and disappeared into the narrow tunnel ahead, swiftly and silently as she had arrived.

Every step he took echoed in Henry’s head like a thundering gong, though he attempted to walk silently. The torch barely emitted enough light for him to not stumble over his feet as he traversed the narrow tunnel, after Kismet, yet he was not about to let that stop him.

 _You don’t even know what you’re getting yourself into,_ Thanatos’ voice sounded in his head, _for all we know you will walk right into a trap!_

Henry angrily pressed his lips together and shook his head. The flier had no idea what he was talking about. And for how willingly he had agreed to come here, it had not even remotely warranted the fight that had broken out between them, after Kismet had disappeared.

Henry narrowed his eye. She would not kill him. He did not know how he was so certain, but something in his gut knew she would not have left him alive so far, had her intention been to end his life. It was a test, he told himself over and over, and it was a test he had to pass.

He doesn’t understand, it rang in his head, he can’t understand. Why I’m here, why I’m doing this, why I’m putting up with –

“You’re back ALREADY?”

Henry stopped so abruptly he nearly ran into the opposing wall as Kismet emerged from an opening ahead.

“I wasn’t done talking to you”, he resolutely shrugged. “You didn’t even give me the chance to explain what exactly I want from you.”

Kismet seemed to eye him pensively, as well as she could. “Your flier was not happy with your decision to pursue this further”, she stated and Henry pressed his lips together. “This is not about him. It’s about me. And I’m not backing down on this.”

“Because Ripred told you you would?”

Henry froze, then let out a scoff. “Maybe. But not just.”

“Alright”, the rat approached and began to circle him again, “shoot. What could you possibly want other than to learn how to be a better warrior?”

“That’s not why I’m –”, Henry interjected, then remembered he was very much here to learn to be useful in battle again. “I mean, I... Ripred claimed you were the only one who could teach me how to get over the negative effects of this bullshit”, he tugged at his eyepatch. “Perception... and all that stuff. He said...”, Henry hesitated, “he said you could teach me to see without my eyes.”

Kismet now stood directly in front of him, her gaze was more pensive than ever. “Is that so”, she hesitated, “What else did he tell you of me?”

Henry shrugged. “Not much. That you were... an old friend, and the only one who could help me with the perception issue. The part with seeing-without-eyes... and that you wouldn’t be eager to do this, especially for a human. Which is understandable. Wasn’t easy for me to come here either.”

To his surprise, Kismet gave a short laugh. “Oh, I have no trouble believing that, making me more and more curious as to what your motive for coming here really is.”

“Well, you sort of said it earlier”, Henry gritted his teeth, “I’m not especially fond of being weak and dependent for the rest of my life. I’ll do whatever it takes – also something I already said.”

Kismet eyed him, how he thought, curiously, before she took on the same resolute look as earlier. “Not a chance, boy.”

“But why not?”, Henry cried and Kismet snorted. “Why not, he asks. Have you a year or so?”

“I am serious!”, Henry hissed. “Just... give me the short version!”

“The short version!”, Kismet echoed mockingly, but soon at least relaxed her stance. “Well, first of all, I have better things to do than attempting to teach a stubborn pup who thinks he knows everything while in fact, he is utterly clueless. And second, presumably the reason you will find more convincing, personally – it would be everything but a pleasant time.” She snorted, “You’re clearly used to playing by your own rules, you hate authority and being bossed around. Will you still be so adamant when I tell you lots and lots of that is exactly what would await you?”

Henry swallowed. He had not really considered what the process of learning under her would be like, discomfort rose in him at the thought of having to follow every order of this rat. No matter how fascinating a conversation partner she had turned out.

“You see”, she drew even closer, “if I were to... theoretically... teach you, you would be playing by my rules. You would be compelled to do things that seem pointless and tedious at first, unlearn everything you think you know about perception and orientation, and go far, far out of your little lazy comfort zone.” Her eye was but a narrow slit. “How about it?”

Henry snorted. “If that’s all... You think I’ve never left my comfort zone?” Everything he’d gone through, these last seven-or-so months, had essentially been out of his comfort zone.

“Name an example, then!”

Henry stiffened. He kept his eye on her as he fervently went over his possibilities. He had much to pick from, yet whatever he chose, it would leave an impression on her, and he was determined for it to be a good one. This was perhaps the only chance he would get.

Henry’s fingers mindlessly brushed the hilt of the torch in his hand and suddenly his eye widened. With a single, determined movement he pulled the leaver, and extinguished the light, leaving them in utter and all-consuming darkness. Henry pressed his lips together as an imminent wave of fear engulfed him yet he suppressed it.

Focus.

The exiled prince took a deep breath, then snapped his fingers. Click. Click. The cave lied ahead as he remembered and Kismet stood across him still, she had not moved an inch.

Henry determinately stepped forward, towards her, holding the flameless torch in front of himself and snapping his fingers periodically. He narrowly avoided a mid-sized rock in his path but when he then stood in front of her, he extended the hand with the torch. “Want it?”

He could not see Kismet’s expression, yet when she spoke, her voice sounded almost delighted. “Now that... is something not many humans are capable of.” She paused, “Perhaps I finally understand why Ripred even bothered sending you to me. When have you passed the first threshold? Do not tell me it was Ripred who taught you!”

Henry grinned. “Some... half a year ago. And no, it was Thanatos’ idea.”

“Thank goodness.” She was definitely grinning.

“So, I’m a step closer to convincing you?” Henry put his hands to his hips. He could not exactly tell, but he fervently hoped he was looking at her.

Kismet sighed. “A step. A baby step – but a step.”

“Again”, he insisted, “I’ll do whatever it takes.”

“Anything –”, Kismet repeated, her voice sounded even closer now, “well then... how about you do what I asked before – the impossible. Shouldn’t pose too much of a problem, should it now?”

Henry found his eye had adjusted to the darkness as much as it ever would, he still barely made out her shape in front of him.

The impossible... it was as vague as descriptions came, yet he still thought he somehow grasped what she was referring to. Something possible, yet impossible at the same time. Something that... his eye suddenly widened. Henry pictured her shape, her squinting to look at him properly. And then... he had an idea.

“Not in the slightest.”


	7. The Impossible

The mice and Teslas’ astonishment to see them back so soon was immense, yet the inventor was even more surprised when Henry disclosed what he wanted of him. The two spent the rest of the day in his workshop, planning, sketching, filing, and crafting long past bed-time.

When Henry awoke the next day, he barely felt his limbs that were stiff from sleeping on the hard floor of Teslas’ workshop, yet the thing the inventor waved in front of his face proudly had him instantly forget all pain.

“I will not forget this”, he cried, wrapping the nibbler in a tight hug. “You’re incredible. And one day, the world will appreciate it as well.”

“You just deliver this to that rat, and hope she finds the bargain fair”, he grinned. “Though if it is as you say, she would be a fool not to.”

“She’s certainly not a fool”, Henry mumbled, carefully wrapping his gift in a cloth and storing it at the bottom of his backpack, “it worries and excites me in equal parts.”

“A fine teacher she will be then.”

Henry turned and grinned as he spotted something like underlying sorrow in Teslas’ eyes. “Oh come on, you’re not jealous are you?”

The inventor smiled sourly. “Not jealous, just... eh”, he shrugged, “a bit nostalgic. It seems only yesterday you were as eager to learn from me as you are to learn from her now.”

“And well you taught me.” Henry stood up, “I’ll be back soon”, he grinned, “and when you’ll see me again, I’ll be a changed man. For the better or for the worse.”

The flight back to the Firelands took Henry and Thanatos only barely over two hours, now that the flier knew the way. For most of it they remained silent, and Henry could barely keep his thoughts from reeling with countless future scenarios – of him giving Kismet her gift, of how her training would be, of what she would teach him.

“You’re... convinced this will work, aren’t you?”

Henry winced as the flier finally spoke. When he looked up he realized they had already reached the part of the tunnel with the obsidian walls.

“If anything will, it’s this.”

The flier remained silent and Henry tugged at the strap of his backpack, feeling compelled to check whether his gift had taken damage, but then Thanatos spoke again – “You... what do you think this will be like?”

Henry froze and frowned, not certain whether he understood the question. “What...?”

“I mean”, the flier darted out into the small cave they had seen Kismet in for the first time and landed, “are you even aware what you are... have you...”, he shook his head, “do you even know what you’re getting yourself into here?”

Henry slid off his back and his frown deepened. “What... I still don’t get what you mean.”

“I mean”, the flier narrowed his eyes, “have you any idea how long this will take? Or what it even is she wants to teach you?” He shook his head, “I know you like your half-baked plans, but considering the gravity of the situation and the lengths you are apparently willing to go to... have you thought this through... at all?”

Henry stared at him and barely managed to shut his mouth. “I...” He is right, it flashed in his mind, this is... insane. By all means. Henry bit his lip, then raised his torch to glance at the tunnel Kismet had disappeared into. Then again...

“I know it’s crazy”, he mumbled without looking at Thanatos, “but I... I also know I’ll do it regardless, so where’s the point in acting like I won’t?”

The flier stared at him then averted his gaze. “You... know you don’t actually have to do this”, he whispered, “I know you wish for nothing more than to regain your skill, and I am not saying it was by any means fair or justified to lose what you had worked for, but”, he looked up and Henry shuddered at the expression in his eyes, “who ever said you needed to be... strong? Who is this invisible judge you are trying to impress?” His talons dug into the ground, “Where is this insatiable hunger for competence coming from, Henry, I can not –”, he shook his head, “Nobody will... JUDGE you, you know? If you are not strong. Not competent or powerful. Nobody...”

“Nobody except me!” Henry interjected. The flier twitched from the sharpness in his stare. “If I don’t do this, I’ll be dependent for the rest of my life – I can’t even defend myself in this state!” He flailed his hands at his face, “Is that what you want for me?”

“N– no”, the flier attempted to speak yet Henry interrupted him again, “How can you even speak like this? How can you judge someone’s own strive to better themselves? Just because YOU haven’t any desire to break from that eternal stagnation you’ve been in for I don’t know how long it doesn’t give you the right to stop me if I have more ambition than that!”

The flier stared at him with an unreadable expression. “I... did not mean it like that”, he mumbled.

“Then how did you mean it?” Henry released a frustrated groan. “You know how I feel right now? I feel like shit. Like a pathetic, miserable, worthless piece of shit!” He barely prevented tears from welling up in his eye, “And you’re telling me to not take the single shot I’ve got at ever feeling better?!”

“No!”

Henry winced at the unexpected volume of the flier’s usually quiet voice. “No”, he repeated, his eyes firmly fixated on Henry. “Not... not if that is... not if that is really how it is.”

The exiled prince only pressed his lips together. His silence spoke for itself.

“In that case, I...”, he dragged his talon across the floor again, “then go to her, if she holds the key to your happiness, go to her and seize it. In that case, you must.”

Henry unclenched his fist and sighed. “I will. You know I will.”

He had already raised the torch and turned to face the tunnel that led to Kismet’s when he suddenly froze. “You... wait”, he turned back to the flier, “and what about... you?”

Thanatos had remained where he was, eyes on Henry. “This is...”, he shook his head, “this is your path, not mine.”

The exiled prince froze. Only with utmost willpower he prevented the torch from slipping out of his hand. “Y... you...”, he took a step towards the flier. Why did this so awfully feel like he was being forced to pick, between the flier and what was possibly his only shot at improving his state? Had he not just promised himself he would never give him a reason to leave anymore? Was he, by committing to this, giving him a reason to –

I won’t pick, Henry adamantly thought, I don’t have to. Why do I have to – “We are bonds”, he firmly stated, gripping the torch even harder, “aren’t our paths one?”

The flier threw him an unreadable look, “I do not mean it like this is permanent goodbye, but I can not even fit the tunnel.”

“That’s not –”

“Henry, will you stop making this harder than it already is?” He flapped his wings in agitation, “You must do this, I understand. And I...”, he sighed, “I will wait for you. For however long it may take.”

“Wait where?”, Henry exclaimed, “Where will you go?” He desperately attempted to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat.

“I... I am not sure”, the flier averted his gaze, “perhaps back to the colony, to wait for them to send our outstanding plague vaccine. Perhaps elsewhere. But I can not... stay.”

“And why not?!” Henry took a step towards him, gritting his teeth so hard it nearly hurt. “I don’t get it, why can’t you just stay here? I mean I’m sure Kismet wouldn’t –”

“This is your... thing, Henry”, the flier interjected, “yours and hers. What would I be doing here, except be in the way? I have no place... in this.”

His words hit like a punch to the gut and the exiled prince barely kept himself standing. All his fears flooded him, Thanatos’ exchanged with Hamnet, and – is this finally his excuse to leave me? His eyes narrowed, he could not use this as an excuse to leave him. Henry had only just promised himself he would not allow that. They were bonds, and for as long as they were, there could never be a justifiable reason to leave each other’s side. At least not... permanently.

“You can only go if you promise to come back.” Henry stared at him adamantly. “To visit!”, he took another step closer. “Only if you come back!”

The moment of hesitation was so short Henry barely caught it – “If that is what you want me to promise, I promise.”

He doesn’t need to promise, Henry blinked away the rising tears. He promised already. When we bonded, he promised... promised... _Our life and death are one, we two._

The exiled prince took a deep breath, chasing all nasty thoughts of Hamnet and doubts and regrets and conversations from his mind. “Don’t have too much fun without me!”, he squeezed out a chuckle and the flier joined in. “I doubt I will.”

“I –”

“Should she refuse despite the gift, I will wait by the citadel”, the flier cut him off and Henry’s mouth shut, all the unasked questions still clogging his head. Now they would remain unanswered.

“Take care.”

It was the last he heard of his flier before he leaped in the air and darted back into the tunnel they had come from.

“I was wondering for how long I’d be rid of you.”

Henry jerked around and nearly dropped his torch at the hoarse voice that suddenly sounded from the shade.

“I told you I’d be back.” Once more he winced at the still unfamiliar sight of Kismet, and once more he couldn’t help but wonder what could have caused the terrible scar where her eye had once been. The closer he looked, the worse it seemed.

“You found the impossible, then?”

Henry held what he thought was an inquisitive stare for a few seconds, then nodded. “That’s what it’ll feel like to you, at least.” He carefully reached his spare hand into one of his belt pockets and took a step closer, extending his wrapped gift. “Consider it... payment.”

Kismet fixated it for a second, then hesitantly took it up, unwrapped it, and a grin spread on Henry’s face as her eye notably widened when she understood what it was. Her claw slipped on the loop at the bottom of the twisted handle, and she slowly inched the round, transparent lens up. Henry’s grin widened as he watched the flickering of his torch be reflected from the glass. Her eye looked strangely distorted through the lens and he had to suppress a laugh.

Only after nearly half a minute of watching her he processed she... was actually looking at him. Not passively staring in a random direction, not squinting to barely make something out – no, her gaze was on him, and for the first time, it was crystal clear.

Kismet stared at him for another half a minute, not breaking eye contact for a second, before she finally turned. Henry watched with intrigue as she cautiously inspected her surroundings, and instinctively raised his torch higher.

With every passing second Henry’s impatience grew, a hundred questions clogged his mind, about whether it was working well, whether she was happy with it, whether it fell into her “impossible” category. Yet he remained silent, lips pressed together tightly.

When she turned back to him and lowered the lens, her claw was shaking. “Where did you get this?”

The exiled prince squinted. Was that a tremble in her voice? He shrugged. “I have a friend who’s good at building things. I asked him for a favor.”

Kismet fell silent again and raised the lens to look at him, he could almost watch her battling to retain her composure. “Is it right though?”, he suddenly asked, “We had no idea how thick to make it, but it’s got to be working, right?”

Kismet twitched. “It is...”, she hesitated, inspecting the lens itself, “not perfect, but it is...” She visibly took a deep breath, “working well enough, I suppose.”

Henry’s smile faded and he put his hand to his hip. “In that case, it is yours.”

“Not from the goodness of your heart only though, I suppose?”

“I already told you”, Henry tilted his head, “it’s payment. Part of a deal, if you like.”

“A deal...”, she drew closer, “a deal that involves me teaching you as you asked?”

“Precisely.”

Kismet stared intently at him through the lens, then sighed, lowering it again. “I can not accept, in that case.”

Henry’s jaw dropped and he stared at her in disbelief. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”, he exclaimed, “If this is still not enough, what do you expect me to bring you? A diamond the size of my palm? A golden apple from the Garden of the Hesperides?” He barely registered her head shooting up at the mention, “King Gorger’s tooth, maybe?” Henry frowned then froze, his hand darted to the back of his hand to Mys, “Actually, nevermind that last one”, he mumbled, “but my point is –”

“I’ve gotten your point”, she cut him off, “yet you missed mine.”

“How so?”

“This is not about what you can or should bring me. This is not about how or with what you fulfill your end of this non-existent deal. This is about how and whether I can even fulfill mine.”

“But Ripred said –”

“Ripred doesn’t know what he is talking about”, she scoffed. “What he’s... asking.” Kismet retreated a few steps, twisting the handle of the vision aid. Her stance and expression oozed unwillingness to give it up again.

“What do you... mean?”

“I mean –”, she twitched, “I know you must have your reasons to ask Ripred for this. To come here, to me...”, she broke off and stared at him, “and I understand that, you know?”

Henry frowned, yet before he could speak she continued – “The desire to... better yourself”, she mumbled, “to become stronger, better... the best you can be. Is it not what drives you, pup? Is it not what fuels you? You long for it, I see it in your expression, your stance. You believe life has robbed you of it all when you lost your eye, and you believe I am the key to regaining it.”

“Then you understand!”, Henry exclaimed, “You have to –!”

“I do not “have to” anything”, she snarled. “I understand you have your reasons to come here, yet you must also understand my reasons.” She averted her gaze, “My reasons to... refuse, despite it all.”

Henry frowned. All he understood was his own confusion with what she was referring to. Apparently, she sensed she hadn’t gotten through to him because she shortly voiced an exasperated groan. “I will formulate it differently then, as you’re clearly not capable of analytical, reflective thinking.”

Henry opened his mouth to interject, but she kept talking – “Like you, I have my reasons to be here. Here, where there is not a soul to bother me. Listen”, she drew closer, “I am a researcher, not a teacher. And I am not interested in a change of career, not even for... you.” She eyed the vision aid lens.

Henry’s eye narrowed. Not capable of analytical, reflective thinking, he internally scoffed. We’ll see who laughs last. “You’re not up to the challenge then?”

Kismet’s head shot up. “Excuse me?”

The exiled prince grinned. It worked every time. “You heard me”, he had to suppress a grin. “I mean, Ripred thought you were, and I did too, when I first saw you. But I guess... we misjudged you. It happens.” Now he could not help the grin from spreading on his face anymore, “I’ll take that back then”, he stretched his hand out, “and go back to Ripred, guess I’ll have to tell him he was right to say you wouldn’t do it. As little as I want him to have been right, you leave me no –”

“You can wipe that smug grin off your face”, she hissed and Henry could not suppress a laugh. “Oh, can I?”

“Fine”, she scoffed, “perhaps you are capable of... thinking. My bad.”

Henry snorted then broke into laughter, and to his surprise, Kismet joined in shortly. “You are determined, I’ll give you that”, she admitted after they had both calmed, “but as strong as your drive to better yourself is, you have not the slightest clue as to what you are getting yourself into here, do you?”

Henry’s grin faded at once and Thanatos’ words flashed in his mind. The flier had said the same thing, and now –

“You practically burst with confidence, with pride”, Kismet shook her head, “You think life out here has steeled you for anything – how bad can a bit of studying under a rat teacher even be?” She scoffed. “You feel like Heracles, making off to capture the Hellhound, yet in truth you are Icarus, rising higher and higher, nearing your destined fall.”

Henry frowned, opening his mouth to ask what she was talking about, but Kismet spoke on – “I may not know what you’ve been through so far, but life has certainly not brought you to your knees yet.” She paused, gazing at him pensively, “And before you say nothing can bring you to your knees, Icarus, you should know everyone can be broken. The strong, the weak, the smart, the feeble. All that is needed is a breaking point.”

Henry swallowed and a shiver ran down his spine. She was most certainly not referring to learning from her anymore, and something about the way she talked chilled him to the bone.

“Take it from someone who had the same arrogance in her youth, and who had to learn it the hard way.”

They exchanged a prolonged stare and Henry remained silent, once more eyeing her scars. Somehow, they seemed even more sinister now. But he had to say something – Henry pressed his lips together. Breaking points and reasons and analogies aside, he had an objective, and he was as determined as ever.

“And if I tell you I am willing to do it regardless?”

“I knew you would say that”, she sighed and turned from him. “Your decision has been made, I see that. I’ve seen it ever since.” She stared down at the vision aid lens. “You may stay, pup.”

“I – what?!”

“Refrain from celebrating”, she hissed. “I have not finished speaking.”

Henry’s mouth he had opened to cry joyously shut.

“You may stay – if you accept my terms.”

“Shoot.”

She snorted. “You do not have yourself a deal yet, understood?” She began pacing up and down, “You will stay, and I will put you on trial. For... a week, let’s say.”

“On... trial?”

“To see how well I can expect to work with you.” She came to a halt in front of him. “To see how... serious you truly are. I am not about to risk wasting my time on a loudmouth who can talk big but backs out as soon as he’s supposed to deliver. Understood?”

Henry swallowed. A week... his gaze trailed behind her, a week of her most likely trying her best to make him quit. _You would be playing by my rules_ , her words flashed in his mind. _You would be compelled to do things that seem pointless and tedious at first, unlearn everything you think you know about perception and orientation, and go far, far out of your little lazy comfort zone._

Well, he looked back at her, returning her challenging stare. Should she bring it. If that was all it would take... “Fine by me”, he replied casually and shrugged. “If you want to bother with that.”

“We form a contract, then”, she ignored him. “I put you on trial – for one week. Seven times going to bed, seven times waking up. If you have not quit by then, I will consider teaching you. But if you do quit”, her gaze was permeating, “you quit for good.”

Henry frowned. “Wait... no, that’s not how it works!”, he exclaimed, “I’ll do it. I’ll do your every bidding for this one week, but I only do all or nothing. If I have not quit by the end of the trial, you do not “consider” it, you commit to teaching me. The contract becomes binding and that until not you, but I am satisfied with the result.” Henry stared at her defiantly, “And if I quit”, he shrugged, “I quit for good.”

Kismet remained silent for a moment, then sounded something like a mix between a laugh and a scoff. “All or nothing, eh?”, she sighed. “All or nothing it is, then.”

“You’re in?”

“Don’t look so delighted”, Kismet scoffed. “If you think the hard part is over, you’ve got another think coming.” She drew closer until her face was inches from his. “You may have come this far, but when I’m through with you, you will wish you had never come here. Are we clear?”

Henry narrowed his eye gazing right back at her. If this was her best attempt at intimidation, it was laughable. “Bring it.”

They silently stared at each other for what felt like an eternity before Kismet turned away. “Then go and tell your flier, but don’t take too long. I’m not eager to sit around waiting for you to finish up your friendly chatter.”

Henry’s chest tightened at the mention of Thanatos and his gaze darted in the direction he had disappeared to. “Already have.”

“Oh?” She sounded surprised, “Where is he then?”

Henry opened his mouth to respond but found no words. Luckily Kismet seemed to understand. “Waiting for you to be done, somewhere more exciting than here, I assume. Well, I hope for our all’s sake he is patient.”

Henry didn’t reply, and she didn’t ask him to follow her, yet when she fell to all fours and slipped into a tunnel leading opposite of where he had come from, he went after her. The trek wasn’t long, they traversed the tunnel for maybe five minutes and the air became notably hotter and hotter.

He was about to ask why that was the case when Kismet halted, pointing up a steep wall. He barely made out an opening, some fifteen feet up, and widened his eyes when Kismet undauntedly proceeded to climb up.

Henry gazed up after her, then at his torch. He would have to extinguish it if he was to ever get up there. But how was he ever supposed to climb that – in the dark? Henry sighed as he stared after Kismet whose tail disappeared in the opening, and extinguished his torch.

It was a hassle climbing in the dark, even with the occasional static images every snap of his fingers produced, and Henry proceeded with utmost caution, double-checking every supposed ledge and nook his fingers found before he pulled himself up.

“Over here”, Kismet called and Henry winced, noticing he had gotten off course somehow. She sounded close, but further left. He inched his way towards where the voice seemed to come from and cried in shock as something suddenly wrapped around his waist to pull him into a cave. Henry hastily fumbled with his pack to fetch the torch and when he could see again, he realized to his left stretched a long cave, and to his right he found the cliff, going fifteen feet straight down.

“You did not fall, at least”, she mumbled and began making her way further into the cave. Henry scoffed and stood up, then raised the torch higher. “Will we be there soon?”

To his surprise, Kismet laughed. “We are there.”

The exiled prince froze. He raised the torch even higher and frowned, this was just another empty cave, was it not? He reluctantly followed Kismet further in, and had already opened his mouth to ask if this was really where she lived when he saw the first mark.

Henry stepped towards the wall and frowned at it, then raised a hand to trace the lines. It appeared to be some sort of text, yet he could not decipher it. Only when he raised his torch, he spotted it was not the only one.

He could not prevent his jaw from dropping when he took in the hundreds and hundreds of scratched-in letters, covering walls and floor of the cave. Much like the notes on Teslas’ walls, documenting his inventions, he understood not one of them. “Did you make all of these?”

“I have to document my research somehow, don’t I?” She sounded amused, “Besides, these are nothing. Maybe one day, I’ll show you the rest.”

“What kind of research do you do?”, he wondered for the first time ever since she had dropped she was a researcher, and inspected the text, against his intention, somewhat impressed.

“A kind that would interest you, most likely”, she snarled, “yet my research is not the reason you came, is it?”

When Henry turned, she stood directly in front of him. “And now, you will hand over your weapons.”

The exiled prince stared at her and blinked, thinking he had misheard. “I... what?”

“Go on”, she gestured at his sword, “from this point on, you won’t need them. There is nothing here that could ever possibly attack you, and you are not here to become a better warrior, as you claimed – correct?”

Henry’s hand instinctively tightened around the hilt of his sword as a surge of discomfort jolted through his body. His teeth clenched and he nervously glanced around before he looked back at Kismet and slowly began unbuckling his sword belt. This is part of the “trying to make me quit”-deal, he thought, fumbling with the clasp. There’s probably lots of this kind of stuff coming, and I’ve committed to obliging to all of it.

Seconds later the belt together with sheath and sword fell at her feet. And if he was perfectly honest, it wasn’t like it had served him well in recent times anyway.

“Good, now the rest.”

Henry made a face as he fumbled one of his belt pockets open to toss the slingshot after the sword.

“And the dagger too.”

A jolt of panic pierced his heart as Henry’s hand tightened around the handle of Mys. “Not that”, he mumbled. “It’s... not even meant to be a weapon. It’s a tool, and I need it for lots of things.” He could not even remember the last time he had ever taken the rat tooth dagger from his belt.

“Should you need it, I will give it back”, Kismet snarled, collecting his weapons from the floor, presumably to stash them away. “And now give it here, or go right back to where you came from.”

Henry’s knuckles shone white from how hard he gripped Mys’ handle. Inch by inch he unsheathed the dagger and valiantly fought every protesting cell of his body. When the dagger at last fell to the floor, he winced at the clanking sound. With a swift motion she had scooped it up and a spear pierced Henry’s heart. The sheath burned empty and useless at the back of his hip.

“Good”, Kismet snarled somewhere to his left. “That was the easy part.”

“What”, he grumbled, plopping to the floor and standing his torch up, “making me feel even weaker?”

Kismet laughed. “Of what use are weapons to one who can not see in the dark?”

“In the dark?” Henry eyed his torch, and she hummed. “Is that not what you came here to learn? To... how did you call it, see without your eyes?”

“Yeah, but how –”

“To see without your eyes”, she repeated in something like a sing-song, “or eye, in your case, I suppose.” She stood directly in front of him and something in the way she looked at him through the raised vision aid unsettled Henry. “Then let’s get to it.”

The exiled prince blinked up at her and his hand automatically darted towards his eye. “Let’s...”

“You surely have something to cover that up with, don’t you, in one of those fancy pockets?”

He stared at her wide-eyed. “Y... you want me to...”, Henry frowned and rose to his feet again, “to relinquish my weapons and then... what’s left of my eyesight too? How the hell am I supposed to do anything?!”

Kismet smiled sourly. “Can you not use echolocation?”

“But how is losing my eyesight supposed to help me?”, he protested, tugging at his eyepatch. “Weapons, sure. They weren’t of much use anyway, in my current state. But I can’t just –”

“Ah –”, she interrupted, “I warned you, did I not? You seem to have already forgotten you’re on trial, committed to following my orders.”

“But I –”

“YOU”, she glared at him through the lens, “came here to learn from me. You practically begged me to teach you, and now that we’re getting to it, you do nothing but object. Perhaps it is best if you leave, perhaps then we both will be happier.”

Henry opened his mouth to protest, then shut it again. Everything in him writhed at the thought of being subjected to absolute authority, yet she was right. He had put himself in this situation, and he had decided it was worth it. He should have expected this, Henry gritted his teeth as he tugged at his eyepatch again. She was trying to make him quit, of course she would have him do exactly what he was most uncomfortable with.

“So... the road to strength involves embracing your weakness? Is that today’s lesson?”, he mumbled, “Or perhaps “your teacher has sadistic tendencies, learn to deal with it”?”

Kismet laughed as Henry slipped off the eyepatch reluctantly, storing it away in one of his pockets. “The lesson is whatever you end up learning.”

“Fair enough.” In the flickering torchlight, Henry fetched a piece of fabric from his backpack and shot the scarred rat a last, long, pensive gaze. “And... for how long am I supposed to leave this blindfold on?”

“A few days, or the entire week, if I feel like it. We’ll see.” She glimpsed at him briefly, then strolled off, to inspect one of the more cluttered walls. The text on it was so dense he barely distinguished one word from another.

Henry bit his lip, fumbling with the cloth. His last glance was at Kismet, standing at the wall, holding up the lens to inspect it, then he saw nothing anymore.

“If this is somehow supposed to help me sharpen my other senses or something, it’s not working!” Henry barely prevented himself from running into a wall and cursed.

“It has only been an hour. If it had any effect already I would be incredibly amazed”, Kismet snarled from somewhere up ahead and Henry snapped his hurting fingers for what felt like the hundredth time, to visualize her. “And besides”, her talon scraped the floor, “you can not “sharpen” senses. Learn to utilize them better, maximize their potential, yes, but increase their function? That’s a myth you must ban from your mind at once.”

“Whatever”, Henry plopped down on the floor in front of her and tugged at the unfamiliar piece of fabric on his face. The echolocation was helping, yet he had always viewed the skill more as a last resort measure, and it was more exhausting to constantly use than he had thought. “You said something about dinner, didn’t you?”

“Be my guest.” Stone scraped on stone, then Kismet’s teeth cracked open something crunchy. Henry carefully reached his hand out until it grasped something small enough to eat. He could not see what it was, only felt it was oval-shaped and around the size of his palm. For the first time, he found himself almost grateful for his inability to see what exactly it was.

After a short moment of hesitation, Henry took a first bite. It crunched loudly and whatever it was, it tasted bitter and somewhat earthy, but the exiled prince thought it wasn’t the worst thing he had ever eaten. Not particularly tasty, but not revolting either.

As he finished up his... whatever it was, he pondered whether it was worth even asking. Whether he even wanted to know. But by the time he had eaten up, his curiosity won over and as he reached for another piece, he finally asked what it was.

“Firebeetles, of course. They are everywhere, and really the only edible thing you can get in this no-mans-land.”

Henry nearly choked and coughed, on the last bit of what he now became painfully aware was a beetle, and instantly regretted his decision to ask. “WHAT – why didn’t you TELL ME –”

“Relax”, Kismet laughed, “they are safe to eat, and they provide enough to keep you alive... for the most part.”

Henry retrieved his hand at once and slid backward until his back hit the wall. “That’s not the point!”, he cried, “I am NOT eating bugs!” Where was his backpack with the waterbag? Henry retched, thinking if he didn’t wash out his mouth right now he would throw up.

“Well then, have fun starving. Because it is the only thing you will GET here.” Another what he understood was a shell crunched between Kismet’s teeth. “But if you’re not up to it, over there is the exit.”

Henry sat there for five straight minutes, back against the wall, fighting a war against himself. Relinquishing his weapons. Giving up the last of his eyesight. Henry pressed his lips together, and now... bugs. Eating... bugs. He still faintly sensed the earthy aftertaste and barely prevented himself from retching.

Then again – Henry’s head shot up. What was he to do? Back down from their deal because of... bugs? His teeth clenched and everything in him wreathed in disgust, but when he made himself aware it was either eat bugs or never learn to be useful, to be strong again, he realized as much as his decision to stay here had been made preemptively, his decision was made now.

The next moment he reluctantly approached again, reaching his hand towards where he remembered the... well, what would have to serve as food. What had that old rule of his been? If you did not think about it too much, it was fine.

It took Henry nearly half an hour to choke down enough Firebeetles to call it a meal, and though his stomach still growled, he ignored it, thinking he wouldn’t be able to eat a single more. “I’ll go to sleep”, he mumbled at last, still shuddering in disgust.

“You should indeed be rested for what awaits tomorrow”, Kismet threw his way and Henry groaned. He had only just arrived, and he already felt more miserable than he had in a long time. Perhaps ever since his and Thanatos’ first month in the Dead Land, he thought, and groaned louder.

Part of him was curious as to how she intended to make it even worse, and another, significantly larger, part of him wished she was exaggerating. That it indeed could not get any worse.

“Oh – one last thing!”

Henry had already dropped to his knees in the corner where he had left his backpack and half-heartedly turned towards the voice.

“You never introduced yourself”, Kismet sounded behind him. “Or do you want me to call you “pup” for the rest of your stay?”

“Won’t you do it anyway?”, Henry shot back and the rat laughed. “Maybe. But at least I’ll have options.”

The exiled prince picked up his backpack, laying it out to serve as a pillow, and sighed. “Names... names... I have so many of them at this point. I’m the “Wielder of Light” for the crawlers, that bitch Cleaver and his friends dubbed me “Prince of Rats”, Sandwich named me “Death Rider” in his prophecies... but honestly, Henry is fine.”

“Henry”, Kismet repeated. She remained silent for so long he reluctantly collapsed onto his backpack, thinking she would not reply at all.

“Henry”, she finally snarled as he had already closed his eye, “Henry... no, no... you know what, “pup” it is.”


	8. Perception

Henry had never given much thought to how it was like being entirely blind, even after losing his eye. And if Kismet’s intention was to make him aware of his own utter dependence on his eyesight, Henry grimly thought she had not missed the mark.

He had, over time, gotten used to a certain morning routine, and it had never posed too much of a difficulty – until now. Being most unpleasantly woken after what could not have been more than five hours of sleep was one thing, but being most unpleasantly woken into absolute darkness was another.

It took Henry a full ten minutes of most ungracious reeling around to remember he could use echolocation to orientate, only when he ran over his still standing yet luckily not burning torch, he realized he was making things harder for himself than he had to.

When he had at last gotten his bearings, the next problem arose in the form of urgent lack of water. Henry always carried at least one full water bag, but he had emptied what he had brought yesterday after the meal, and there was none in sight. When he meant to ask Kismet for water to freshen up and wash the taste of sleep from his mouth he for the first time noticed she was nowhere to be found.

Unease rose in Henry, what if something happened now? He felt more vulnerable and helpless than he had in a long time, and if not even she was here to handle a possible danger, what...?

Yet Henry quickly reprehended himself, pulling at the blindfold. If danger should arise, he’d ditch the thing in two seconds. Preemptively, Henry picked up his torch from the floor and stashed it in his backpack, where he couldn’t run it over again, and knew where to find it in case of an emergency.

Still – he instinctively raised his head, despite his blindness, and snapped his fingers. Where had Kismet disappeared to, after she had woken him?

Henry began making his way further into the cave, contemplating how he hadn’t even properly explored it yesterday. It turned out not even remotely as big as it had seemed, instead, a narrow tunnel in the very back of it led downward, Henry could make out something like stairs someone must have arduously knocked into the stone.

He hadn’t snapped his fingers in a while, only stood still in front of the tunnel, contemplating if she was perhaps down there, and winced as Kismet’s voice suddenly sounded in front of him – “Were you looking for me?”

“I wanted to ask if you had any water”, he mumbled and snapped his fingers, to perceive her seemingly moving up the stairs toward him.

“We eat breakfast, then you can go fetch water”, was all she responded, and Henry opened his mouth to object, then closed it again, thinking “but I have a different morning routine” was probably not a convincing enough argument. “Let me guess”, he reluctantly trotted after her, “Firebeetles?”

“What else?”

Why am I here? The question circled his mind like a predator, ready to strike. Why am I... He listlessly swallowed the rest of his last Firebeetle and shuddered internally. Henry was tired, miserable to the bone, and there was no apparent reason to expect change any time soon. He was here, with this strange rat, doing her every bidding, for... what?

“Why am I here?”

He did not see her, yet Henry almost sensed Kismet halting. “Excuse me?”

He sighed. “I mean”, he flailed his arm through the air randomly, trying to find the right words to ask what he meant. “I mean, Ripred said you could help me. And you, as reluctant as you were, apparently know what he meant by that.” He sighed. “So... will any of you fill me in on it as well?”

Kismet was silent for a moment, then he heard her laugh. “He did not even tell you WHAT it was I could help you with when he sent you here?”

“No”, Henry scoffed. “I mean... he said something about seeing without my eyes, and a “second threshold”, whatever that’s supposed to be. But no, he didn’t specify.”

“And you... CAME.” She sounded less believing than ever. “On... THAT basis alone?”

“I’m desperate, okay?!”

“Yeah, I grasped as much.”

“So will you tell me then?” Henry pressed his lips together. “It has to do with echolocation, has it not?” Both Ripred and Kismet had seemed especially pleased when they found he could use echolocation. And hadn’t Kismet formulated it like... “You asked me when I had passed the “first threshold” earlier, referring to echolocation, right?”

Kismet hesitated for a moment, then crunched the shell of a Firebeetle between her teeth. “What you so amateurishly refer to as “echolocation” is not really “echolocation”, at least not even remotely all there is to it”, she hissed. “It is the very basics of a much larger and much more powerful concept than you and your little brain can even begin to fathom.”

Henry narrowed his eye beneath the blindfold. “And how do YOU know so well how much I can fathom?”, he shot back, thinking she and her arrogance could go to hell. What was it with people and underestimating him, anyway?

Kismet laughed. “Feel free to prove me wrong.”

“You can bet on that.”

“In any case”, another shell crunched between her teeth, “as I told you yesterday, I am a researcher. I’ve spent a large portion of my life on studies, and among behavior and personality aspects, another of my passions was the concept of perception, with a special focus on echolocation. I had taken to pushing the back then seemingly established limits of it, and discovered they were not limits at all.”

“Woah, wait a second”, Henry interjected, “you’ve... DISCOVERED this “higher form” of echolocation? Really?”

“As unbelievable as it sounds”, he heard the smile in her voice, “before me, nobody has ever bothered. Or at least not so much they would have documented their research. Believe me, I would know. Apparently, those born with the skill could not be bothered working on it more, and those born without it believed it to be unachievable regardless.”

“People are lazy, I guess”, Henry mumbled, and Kismet laughed. “So if what I use”, he snapped his fingers, “is not “echolocation, or at least not even remotely all there is to it”, how much... is there to it, then?”

“Much more”, she paused, “you said it was your flier who taught you?”

“He dragged me out of bed an hour earlier every day for nearly eight weeks until I had that first...”, Henry snapped his fingers again, and not to see this time, “eh, how do you call it? Breakthrough moment. When I first actually SAW something. Or... perceived, I guess.”

“You could call it a breakthrough moment”, Kismet snarled, “though I have taken to calling it... a threshold.”

Henry’s head shot up, “Oh, so that’s what you meant...”

“Yes. When you had your so-called “breakthrough moment”, you passed the first threshold of echolocation. Eight weeks, eh?”, she pondered, “That’s a decent enough time. I’ve heard of people trying for years without making any progress. I’ve my theories on why it is easier for some, yet that’s a conversation topic for another day.”

Henry tilted his head. He was curious, yet asked a more pressing question instead – “Is that how you... see, then?”

Kismet hummed. “Precisely. When the last of my eyesight began failing me, I guess I could call myself lucky to have dedicated my life to studying alternate methods of perception.”

“But how...”, Henry frowned, “DO you see? Like, you don’t make any noise that can bounce off things, do you?”

“No”, he thought she had stood up, “yet we will get to that part in due time. Perhaps you are forgetting you’re still on trial, and I’ve not agreed to help you pass the second threshold yet.”

“How many thresholds are there?”, Henry asked, ignoring her attempt at wrapping up the conversation.

Kismet laughed. “Two. Though in terms of actual levels, I’ve found there are three, at least as far as I’ve discovered. Though level three has no threshold per se, I would still refer to it as a separate level. Maybe one day you’ll see why.”

“Hmm”, Henry hummed, not entirely sure whether he had understood all of that. “Regardless”, he yelped as she grabbed him by the collar and lifted him to his feet, “we’ve sat around idly for long enough. If you think you can stall like this every day, you’re gravely mistaken. Up you go.”

“Oh come on”, Henry protested, “I was asking important questions!”

“Maybe. Yet you are not here to ask questions. You are here to work.” Her claws scraped on the floor as she moved away, “You said something about water, did you not?”

Kismet led him to the back of her cave and then turned right. A narrow path led upward, and in the cave it mounded in Henry heard the distinct bubbling of water. It sounded not like a creek or a spring though, more like... “These are hot springs, they produce boiling water heated by the magma of the volcano beneath us”, she explained, and Henry remembered the crawlers had mentioned she lived in an inactive volcano.

“And the water is fresh?”

“I’ve been drinking it for...”, she hesitated, “for as long as I’ve lived here, and it has not killed me, so it will not kill you either.” She moved past him and he snapped his fingers to perceive her beside a large boulder. “I usually collect it in this hollow, to let it cool, but I presume you have some sort of vessel to carry water of your own.”

Henry nodded, sprinting towards the path to the main cave and directly into the wall instead. Apparently, the opening was a foot to the left.

Henry cried in pain and sank down, holding his throbbing head. Behind him, Kismet laughed. “Not funny!”, he exclaimed, attempting to suppress the uprising tears. “What if I’d broken my nose?!” He carefully touched it and winced in pain. It was maybe not broken, but certainly hurt.

“Come on, over here”, she pulled the half-heartedly protesting prince up to his feet and dragged him along. “You’ll have to get better at this if you intend for your nose to survive this week.”

Ten minutes it took for Henry to gather his things and find his way back up to fill both his water bags with cooled water, wash his face, drink, and refill the bags again.

The water Kismet had gathered in the hollow was nearly out by the time he was done, so he rolled away the boulder to allow new water to replace what he had used. It hissed and sizzled as it came in contact with the cooler water that had remained in the hollow, and a couple seconds later Henry closed the opening back up. He had no idea if the hollow had entirely filled, but he was certainly not about to check with his bare hands.

When he rejoined her in the main cave, Kismet was already waiting for him, and Henry’s eye beneath the blindfold widened when he heard what she had in store for him now.

“We would not want you to grow fat and lazy, would we?”, she announced and led him out of the cave, down the cliff they had climbed last night, then through a series of tunnels that led back and to the cliff in a circle, forming a type of obstacle course. Sprinting, climbing, crawling, traversing different types of floor and different sizes and shapes of environment.

“Whenever did you set this up?”, Henry asked, unable to suppress a grin. If she thought exercise was a type of punishment for him, she could not know him as well as she thought she did. In fact, for the first time ever since he had come here, he found himself looking forward to something.

“I did not set anything up”, she replied a little too quickly, “it naturally existed in the environment. I merely decided it should be an obstacle course from now on.”

“Sure”, Henry’s grin widened, yet he didn’t bother to argue. He instead stretched his aching back, every fiber of his body looked forward to the long-overdue exercise.

“You don’t seem too unwilling”, Kismet remarked and Henry shook his head. “Absolutely not, I love exercising. Am in pretty good shape too, at the moment.”

“Good.” He was not sure whether she was pleased or unsettled. “In that case, you’ll do five laps, and that cliff is part of the course. I want to see you poke your head into the cave five times before you can call it a day, got it?”

Henry only grinned, tugging at his belt. He hadn’t had the mind for it yet, but now he thought he should maybe ditch some of his belts and bags and put on a normal shirt instead of his leather vest. It had been cooler in the cave itself, but out here it was nearly as hot as in the jungle. “Mind if I get changed first?”

For the first time ever since he had arrived here, Henry’s misery and unwillingness evaporated to make way for confidence as he took to the obstacle course.

It was far from a breeze doing it all blindly, and the first lap he spent mostly figuring out how to best do it, but by the third and fourth lap, he had memorized it so well he barely had to snap his fingers anymore. And by the fifth lap, he felt an immense wave of pride when he arrived back by the cliff, not having used echolocation the entire round.

“Hey, can I do five more laps after lunch?”, he asked as he dragged himself over the edge into Kismet’s cave, panting happily, and heard her laugh. “Why does it even surprise me you’re an exerciser?”, she called and drew closer, “Fine by me. As long as we balance it out with a little ritual before bedtime I feel you will like much less.”

Henry only shrugged as he made his way over to his backpack to put on a shirt. After some consideration, he’d ditched the leather vest after all before taking to exercise, and decided he’d put on a fabric shirt afterward, to keep all his clothes dry.

Even the Firebeetles seemed less awful, now that he had something to look forward to after the meal, and only fifteen minutes later Henry whizzed back down, to see if he could do even better this time. Maybe, he thought as he jumped the last couple feet to the floor, he could put up a stopwatch here as well, at some point.

“So, how did it go?”

Henry barely raised his head from where he had leaned it on the wall and smiled proudly. “I might even extend the course a bit, there’s that one cave I discovered I could include, maybe even put something up in it.”

The exiled prince would have bet a lot Kismet grinned. “Is that so?” He nodded and she remained silent for a moment, then spoke again – “You will go to bed soon, then?”

“I’m incredibly hungry”, Henry sighed and placed a hand on his growling stomach. “Those beetles aren’t just horrendous, they’re also... not food. At least they don’t seem to function like food, because food is supposed to make the hunger go away.”

“Oh my bad”, the rat snarled, “how could I have forgotten you have STANDARDS. I will of course go out of my way to provide for them at once.”

“Yeah, yeah”, Henry grumbled and sighed, before picking himself up from the wall. “I got it. No need to strain yourself or anything.”

Kismet laughed somewhat forcibly. “You get used to it”, she then mumbled, and Henry miserably dragged himself over to her stash of beetles. He forced himself to eat up a whole of ten of them, yet his stomach still growled when he thought he couldn’t choke down a single more. Oh, what would he have given for some grilled fish with a fresh mushroom salad and fruit juice! He nearly began drooling just imagining it.

“I’m going to go to sleep”, Henry dejectedly mumbled and yawned, before stretching his now aching limbs. As fun as the exercise had been, his whole body was already stiff and sore from it. He did not even want to imagine how he would feel in the morning.

“Not so fast”, the rat cut him off and Henry groaned. “You are forgetting I allowed you some more playtime with the parkour only under the condition we’d do a little pre-bedtime ritual.”

“But I –”

“Come, sit here”, she ignored him and Henry followed her over to his backpack reluctantly. “What do you –”

“Sit”, was all she said, and he plopped down with his legs crossed beside the bag, frowning beneath the blindfold. “Right. And now?”

“Now, you sit still.”

Henry’s frown deepened. “I – what?”

“You sit”, she repeated, and he was certain he heard a grin in her voice. “You’ve exercised so much you must balance it out. You spent, what? Three, four hours on that parkour – you will have it in you to sit still for a measly ten minutes, will you not?”

Henry froze. “A... did you just say TEN –”, but Kismet cut him off, “SILENTLY I mean.” Something clanked, like stone on stone. “I have here with me an hourglass. The sand takes five minutes to run through, so by the time you hear the second turn, you may move. And if you make even the slightest noise, well”, she gave something like a mix between a sigh and a hum, “let’s just say, by tomorrow you’ll wish you hadn’t.”

Henry’s head spun. Ten minutes, he thought over and over, ten whole minutes of... what? He blinked into the blindfold, shifting in agitation. What the hell was he supposed to occupy himself with? Looking at his surroundings was out of the question, and if he had neither his eyes nor his ability to move, what else was there even left?

He twitched as he suddenly heard a scraping sound. His mouth opened automatically to ask what Kismet was doing, then he closed it again.

Perhaps the hardest part was not knowing what was going on around him. The temptation to snap his fingers and look was so strong Henry eventually shifted to sit on his hands to keep them in check. He could neither move, nor look, nor perceive anything, and with every passing second it drove him crazier. The only sense he had left was his hearing, so his attention shifted to it until he pressed his lips together, desperately attempting to hear, to perceive anything.

Naturally, he cried in shock and nearly fell over when a loud crash sounded, like someone had dropped a boulder onto the stone floor.

“There goes the first strike”, Kismet called from the same direction and Henry clenched his fist. “You did that on purpose!”

“Strike two”, was all she responded. Henry’s mouth shut at once. Who knew what she would have him do for all of these strikes tomorrow.

When he could not bear it a second longer, he began seriously considering whether taking another strike to ask how much time was left may be worth it. He had heard a sound that had suspiciously resembled the clanking from when she had first put down the hourglass a while ago, and besides, he had to be over half time at least. In fact, there couldn’t be much time left at all. Henry felt like he had been sitting there for ten hours, not ten minutes.

“Hey, how much time is left?”, he finally called out, and promptly, Kismet laughed – “Oh come on, you really just did that? It’s barely been three minutes, if even.”

Henry froze. “Wait... THREE –”

“Strike three, and strike four”, Kismet snarled, “you better be extra quiet for the remaining seven minutes.”

At that moment, Henry honestly believed he would rather die.

Henry jerked up so violently he ended up slapping Kismet in the face with the back of his hand when she shook him awake the next day. “Up, up”, she gleefully hummed despite the hit and Henry groaned. “What... it’s been what? How long have I been –”, he was cut off by an especially long and profuse yawn.

“Four hours sharp”, she called, already having moved away. “You’ll go refill the water supplies, eat, and then I want you out here. There’s something you’ll have to do for me.” With that, she disappeared and left Henry sitting up where he had slept, eye widened beneath the blindfold. “FOUR HOURS?!”, he yelled after her, yet Kismet was gone.

“Four hours”, he mumbled to himself and yawned again, wanting nothing more than to be miles from here. To eat a lavish breakfast, to fight some epic battle – and to sleep for longer than four hours. But somehow, his past self had believed being here was the best course of action for him. Somehow.

Eating, drinking, refilling the water supply... Henry ran on autopilot, barely in control of his movements. He narrowly avoided running into the wall again as he stumbled out into the main cave where Kismet waited. “Should have sat still the full ten minutes and I would have let you sleep for eight hours”, she greeted him. “Let’s see if you can do better today.”

Had he his vision, Henry would have spent the entire time she had him carry boulder after boulder up the wretched cliff death glaring her. Apparently, there was a specific type of rock somewhere down there that helped her determine the state of the volcano, if it was still dormant and all, but of course Henry saw nothing, so he had to make do with trial and error. Which was of course the point.

By lunchtime, he was dead on his feet, and not in a good way like the day before, that he had spent exercising. When Kismet finally let him off the hook he collapsed beside where she stored her supply of Firebeetles and hadn’t she lifted him up by his collar, he would have fallen asleep then and there. “Leave me”, Henry groaned, barely keeping his eye open.

“You’ve not brought me the correct rock today, so we’ll try again tomorrow”, she only snarled, sitting him down. “Keep at it, and don’t worry, unlike that of Sisyphus, your task is at least finite.”

Henry was much too spent to ask who the hell Sisyphus was, he only reached for the beetles. At this point, he couldn’t care less what it was, if only he could eat it. But when his hand only found two singular Firebeetles where there had once been a huge stack, he was instantly wide awake.

“Eh... Kismet, you’re out of bugs”, he uncertainly called to where he had last heard her. “There’s only two left!” He stuffed one into his mouth at once, twisting the other in his hand.

“Oh, is that so?”, she replied from further into the cave. “Well, sucks for you then.”

“WHAT?!”, Henry cried and somehow even pulled himself up before stumbling forward. “What do you mean? Aren’t you going to catch more?”

Kismet laughed. “For who? Me? I can eat them whenever I see them, consider the fact that I even had a stash a feat of luxury. I seldom collect a large amount, actually.”

For the first time, Henry felt a jolt of actual panic. “And what the hell am I supposed to eat?!”, he called, waving the last beetle in how he presumed her direction.

“Hey, I never said you couldn’t catch some for yourself”, she replied, “or were you expecting me to serve them to you on a silver platter? It is you who wishes to stay, so find a way, or leave. What even am I, that you expect me to feed you as well? Your mother?”

Henry groaned. “Hey wait – I don’t even – WAIT!” He cried from pain as he stubbed his foot on a rock and had Kismet not caught him, he would have hit the floor.

“You will find tons of them if you follow the tunnel leading downward, to the right of the cliff”, she put him back on his feet. “And you know what”, he heard a quiet rustling, then the clanking of metal on stone. “I’ll even give you this back. But only if you share your catch with me.”

Henry’s heart skipped a beat as he dropped to his knees to pick up the – he could not suppress a joyous cry as his hand closed around the oh so familiar handle of Mys.

“Good luck then”, murmured Kismet, yet Henry barely listened. Who needed luck if they had the most glorious dagger in the whole world?

Right. Because not even luck could help him. Henry hoped with all his might Kismet would not be in the cave when he attempted to sneak back in, after what must have been hours of fruitless attempts to stab beetles in the dark. He did not feel like taking any of her imminent gloating, not now.

In all his enthusiasm, he had to admit at least before himself he had kind of forgotten the whole part where he would have to do it all without his eyesight.

He had first tried to stomp them dead, then realized he could not eat bug mush, so he would have to catch them by hand. But they had quickly turned out quite agile, and apparently could fly, as well as demonstrated a clear aversion to being held in place. And stabbing them with the dagger, which was probably the only way to actually get them, was utterly impossible without eyesight. Even taking off the stupid blindfold had left him as blind as before, for he had not brought light and the cave was pitch black.

“So, how is our exterminator in training? Will we dine lushly tonight?”

Henry froze and nearly dropped Mys as Kismet’s voice sounded up ahead. Of course, she’d been waiting for him. “It is IMPOSSIBLE!”, he exclaimed, plopping down by the wall. “I can’t possibly stab them without seeing them!” He tugged at the blindfold he had preemptively put back on. He was rather fine with not finding out what her punishment for taking it off would be.

“Oh really?”, Kismet sounded amused. “How do you presume I do it then?”

Henry blinked. He had not given that a thought before. “Echolocation?”, he guessed, and Kismet hummed. “How have you tried it?”

“Echolocation”, he groaned, “but I have to snap my fingers for that, and they move around, so as soon as I’ve localized them, they’re already somewhere else. It’s basically futile.”

Kismet was silent for a long time, and Henry began wondering if this was just her thinking her words through as usual or if she would not respond at all, when she spoke – “You know what, I am disappointed. I presumed you were better at thinking outside the box, but apparently, you are like everyone else – so focused on the fancy skills you have that you forget the correct way is often the simplest one.”

His head shot up in something like protest. “What the hell are you –”, but Kismet interrupted, “Nevermind, you can try again tomorrow. Now, let us find out how long you may sleep.”

At least this time, Henry found he had something to think about. He was so preoccupied contemplating what he had so apparently missed that justified her calling him a disappointment so openly. Henry bit his lip as the words rang in his head, and chipped his pride like acid.

For the first time, he made himself aware that, for as much an eccentric, overbearing, at times plainly insufferable, slave driver she seemed, it had all... served a purpose.

The more thought he gave it, the more he understood, as much as her tasks and exercises and challenges had seemed random, none of them had actually been. She’d not even committed to teaching him anything yet, and in theory, she could have him do anything she wanted, but instead... she was already teaching him, in a way.

She had limited his ability by disarming and blinding him, forcing his focus into the rest of his senses, which was, in fact, exactly what he had wanted to learn. To rely less on his eyesight. And though only a couple days had passed, he now orientated himself much better than he had before. Even if he still occasionally ran into walls or rocks. Occasionally.

She’d sent him to run an obstacle course by the end of which he’d found his orientation and ability to perform without his eyes or even echolocation had vastly improved – not to mention it was physical exercise.

She’d had him climb and traverse the terrain carrying heavy rocks, forcing him to work on his balance, by the end of which he had found himself much more steadfast on the steep cliff.

She had him sit here, still for ten minutes, for – Henry hesitated, then begrudgingly admitted it was probably supposed to help him focus and calm his thoughts.

And now she had him... stab beetles in the dark? He frowned, and nearly jumped as the hourglass clacked. Was it really half time already? Henry suppressed the urge to ask, his sleep was on the line here, and he would not sacrifice a single hour needlessly.

What did she mean, the simplest way was often the best one? What was the simplest way, if not echolocation? Henry groaned, and instantly reprehended himself as Kismet sighed. “Really? And you were doing so well. But that’s strike one.”

Henry angrily clenched his jaw and focused his thoughts on the beetles again. His stomach audibly growled and Kismet laughed. He barely suppressed the urge to snap at her, but to his surprise, she proceeded to address him, and her tone held not a single ounce of mockery – “It is not that hard, you know? And if you’re currently screaming at me to give you a hint in your head, I can say this much – try letting the beetles make the noise.”

Henry frowned beneath his blindfold. Let the beetles make the... His hand twitched and he stuck it under his leg again. His lips determinately pressed together. He would show her. Whatever that was supposed to mean, he would figure it out, tomorrow. He would bring back a whole mountain of bugs, and that would show her for being disappointed.

“Let the bugs make the noise...”, Henry mumbled absentmindedly, clutching the handle of Mys as he sat in the middle of the same cave he had attempted to catch the Firebeetles in last night – only this time he had freshly awoken from seven hours of sleep. It had done wonders for his ability to focus.

Henry sat in nigh unbroken silence, pondering on the words when he heard it. Tiny feet scuttling along the floor to his right. He frowned and turned his head, focusing all his attention on the sound.

Tap, tap, tap, tap. Henry dared not move as the bug skittered closer. It was like they were alone in the room, like there were not at least ten others around them. Henry did not even question how he knew the sound’s exact position or how he perceived it so clearly – all he did was raise the hand with Mys.

Tap, tap, tap, tap. The dagger whizzed down as he sensed the bug beside him and when Henry raised it again, he could collect the neatly impaled Firebeetle from the tip.

An immense wave of pride and joy swept over him and the exiled prince nearly laughed out loud, yet the moment he moved, the rest of the beetles around him scattered. He quickly sat back down, stashing the bug he had killed in his bag. He was not done yet.

The next ten minutes Henry spent sitting silently in the middle of the cave, holding Mys ready to strike. And instead of hunting the bugs actively, he had them come to him. As Kismet had said – all he had to do was shift his focus from the noises he made himself to the noises they made.

Yet as much fun as he had with it at first, concentrating on that level and ignoring his own breaths and his heartbeat was far from easy if you did it for longer than a couple minutes. He slipped out of focus periodically, and the longer he spent hunting the harder it became. By the end of the ten minutes he was more mentally exhausted than he had ever been, but he also proudly clutched a large bag filled to the brim with Firebeetles when he at last began making his way back.

“Ah, I see you got the hang of it after all.” Henry grinned at where Kismet’s voice came from and couldn’t help but feel she sounded proud. “It is as you said”, he gripped the bag harder, “all I had to do was have the bugs make the noise. And now”, he raised his chin even more and began striding down the cave to where the tunnel leading to the hot spring was, “these are mine, so I’m entitled to at least steaming them. Maybe they’ll taste more like food then.”

“Watch out or your head will explode from all the hot air it’s absorbed!”, she called behind him but Henry only laughed. “I’m taking that risk!”

From this point on, the exiled prince grimly decided, he would not miss a single hour of sleep anymore. If he could sit still for ten minutes in a cave hunting beetles, he could also do it on Kismet’s watch.

Now, of course, it was much harder without the additional occupation to keep his focus on, but Henry quickly found out he could concentrate on any sound, localizing it almost unbelievably accurately if he only focused. And if there weren’t bugs to monitor, he did it with Kismet instead, who never remained entirely silent throughout his ten still minutes.

For the first time now, he asked himself if she did it specifically to give him a sound to focus on. If figuring this out had been the point of sending him to stab beetles in the dark. Well, most likely.

That night he slept for a full eight hours for the first time, after a luxurious seeming meal of steamed Firebeetles. The process of steaming actually made a huge difference, Henry found, and all he had to do was roast them over the hot spring for a measly ten minutes. Ha, hadn’t he thought ten silent minutes were unbearable when she had first had him sit them out?

And then it was back to gathering rocks, to running the parkour, to steaming more beetles, to hunting, to sleeping, to climbing, to sitting still. To listening. To rinsing, and repeating. To rinsing, and repeating. To rinsing, and –

“How about we do something else today?”

Henry’s head shot up from the Firebeetle he had been eating. “Something... like what?”

“Oh, you’ll see”, she snarled, “but considering I’ve just woken you for the seventh time, I thought it a worthy enough occasion to break up our routine a bit.”

Henry froze. The beetle nearly slipped from his hand and hadn’t he been blindfolded, he would have stared at her in disbelief. “Wait, today is –”

“Oh come on”, she scoffed, “don’t tell me you’ve not at least kept tabs on how many days it’s been! Do I have to do EVERYTHING around here?”

Henry broke into nigh hysteric laughter. “Dammit I didn’t even keep – is this really my last day on trial?!”

“Just be ready in five minutes. And bring your whole backpack. We’re going on a bit of a trip.”

Henry finished up the beetle grinning widely. That’s right, he thought, he hadn’t even... He squinted, had a whole week passed since he had first arrived here? It hadn’t even felt that long. Ever since he had fallen into the routine, everything had just... whizzed past him.

As soon as he had finished up his meal he stood up, confidently walked over to his backpack, and suddenly became almost too aware this was his last day on trial. His last day on... Henry’s heart beat out of his chest and a nigh forgotten pep returned to his step as he shouldered his bag and began making his way towards the exit. His goal was close, oh so close. Closer than it had ever been.

“You done?”

Then again – some of his enthusiasm abated as he followed Kismet down the cliff. His goal might be closer than it had ever been, but as much as today marked the end of his trial, it also marked only the beginning of his actual training. His ordeals weren’t over, they had basically only just begun. This is probably only the appetizer for what else she’ll have in store for me, he grimly thought and jumped to the ground.

“What’s with the long face?”, Kismet laughed. “Changed your mind? You can always leave if that is what you want.”

“Not a chance”, he scoffed. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”

Instead of answering, she proceeded forward, and Henry easily followed the even sounds of her steps. Kismet had never asked him for how exactly he had managed to catch the Firebeetles blindly for the first time, yet she had from that point on began testing his directional hearing at every possible occasion, especially during their “ten still minutes” ritual.

He had not exactly gotten much better at it, but his ability to focus had at least improved so much he could do it for ten minutes straight and had even occasionally taken to doing it outside the ten still minutes. Kismet had not commented on the development, yet after what must have been five days or so told him he could take the blindfold off if he wanted.

Yet Henry had refused.

When Kismet had asked for the reason, he had resolutely stated he now understood why she had him wear it, and though she had not responded, he felt like he had passed another test by refusing. Her silence had just sounded so... satisfied.

Now Henry quickly deduced she must be leading him somewhere entirely new. He did not recognize the path, all he registered was that it consistently declined and that at least an hour must have passed by the time he first heard a distant rushing. “Hey, is that a river I’m hearing?”, he stopped and squinted to focus.

“Not a river, a lake with a waterfall.” The sound of Kismet’s steps abated as well. “Kudos on already hearing it. It is half a mile away, still.”

Henry grinned widely and resumed walking, toward the sound. Kismet’s claim you could not “improve” your senses rang in his head and he wondered if it was true, if all of this had been available to him before, and if he had just not listened properly – or if being stripped of his eyesight had indeed improved his hearing. It certainly felt like it had. Then again, he could not really tell whether it was simply the effect of shifted focus or actual improvement.

Another ten minutes of somewhat steep descent later they finally arrived somewhere Henry with a snap of his fingers perceived as a large cave with the deafeningly rushing waterfall. It must be at least a hundred feet tall, he thought and crooked his neck to the ceiling, despite not seeing anything. “Woah...”, he smiled at the faint echo of his voice, “it’s enormous!”

He approached to feel the water, registering it was pleasantly warm. And suddenly his every fiber wished to jump in, to swim a couple laps, and take the first proper bath in a week. “Hey Kismet”, he turned to her, “mind if I go swimming for a bit? I’ll do whatever challenge you have for me here later, promise.”

He had already tossed his backpack together with the belt holding Mys at the wall and pulled his shirt over his head when Kismet laughed. “Are you not hungry?”

Henry froze mid-movement. “Hun... wait”, he slowly turned to her, eye widened beneath the blindfold, “are you telling me there are FISH in this lake?”

“It is clean, and not boiling, so why shouldn’t there be?”

The exiled prince stared in her direction and felt first a wave of immense joy, then searing anger overwhelm him. “There are FISH only an HOUR from your cave and you have me EAT BEETLES FOR AN ENTIRE WEEK?! Could you not have SAID SOMETHING?!”

Kismet laughed. “But these are the reward, you see? For doing better than I... thought you would.” Henry opened his mouth to shoot back but she kept talking, “And besides, I rarely come here because the territory of the pinchers is just across the lake, they usually dislike visitors, so we should be careful. I’d rather avoid making enemies, you know?”

Henry stared her way, mouth agape, for a few more moments, then he shut it. Sure, avoiding a bunch of six-foot-long lobsters wanting him off their lands was a good enough excuse, but still.

Henry sighed and made a face, then turned back to the lake. Whatever, he decided, he was here now – no point crying over the past. He’d just enjoy it seven times more now.

Not for a second longer he could restrain himself and barely heard Kismet laugh as he dove headfirst into the lake. Fishing and eating would come later. First, he would have a little fun.

Henry took some half an hour to enjoy the water, swim lap after lap, and not worry about trials, perception, pinchers, or food. Just... relaxing. The water was heavenly and only when he surfaced near the beach he had left his things at and heard the distinct sound of Kismet eating, he remembered his own growling stomach.

“The fish any good?”, he called out to her and she hummed, “Go on and catch some for yourself... if you can.”

Henry grinned and nodded, then froze. “Hold up”, he frowned, “you want me to fish... blindly?”

Kismet was silent for a couple seconds, then laughed. “I told you you could take the blindfold off days ago. It was YOU who insisted on leaving it on. But if you wish to try it without your eyes, be my guest.”

Henry pulled himself out of the water and shuddered. His hand automatically darted up at the blindfold and the temptation of ditching it and fishing normally to reward himself for the ordeals of the last week overwhelmed him, yet then he lowered his hand again.

His head darted to where he heard Kismet still gobbling up the fish. “Is this it then”, he asked, “your last trial challenge?”

The eating noise abated and the rat broke into laughter. “Oh Henry, must everything be a challenge for you? Can you not just take the moment as it is and enjoy yourself for once?”

“So I’m right?”

“OF COURSE you’re right, and now get at it, before there’ll be none left!”

Henry broke into vigorous laughter and Kismet soon joined. “I knew something didn’t sound right about that”, he murmured, already pondering on how to do this. He could attempt to use Mys, but he doubted he’d catch anything, especially without his eyesight. But the lesson was to think outside the box, and the moment the thought crossed his mind, he had an idea.

Henry quickly tiptoed over to his backpack and fetched a large cloth, then jumped back into the water. He took a deep breath, once more thankful he had practiced holding it in the Vineyard of Eyes, and dived.

At first, all he heard was the muffled rush of the waterfall and the sound of his own bloodstream. It took him nearly half a minute to focus so much he could successfully block it out. Yet he still had to come up for air three times before he heard a different type of rushing. It moved sporadically and Henry had a hard time following it, but some five minutes later he’d caught the source of the noise in the cloth.

Henry leaped out of the water with a joyous cry and released one end of the cloth, allowing the fish to slip out. “No DAMMIT!”, he yelled, plummeting back in, after the fish. Kismet only laughed.

Another five minutes later Henry had caught two fish and, for the first time in forever, set up his torch to grill them then and there. He pondered how he was supposed to gut them blindly when he noticed Kismet was not producing any sound anymore. Henry immediately rose and snapped his fingers in search of her, and perceived her sitting still on the beach.

The rat did not flinch as Henry plopped down next to her. He let his feet dangle into the water and sighed, before finally raising a hand to remove the blindfold.

Henry squinted as the violent brightness sparked in his eye he was not used to using anymore, then cautiously opened it again. And when he then caught his first glance at the scenery before him, his jaw dropped.

The lake was nigh perfectly round and glowed brightly, more than normal water bodies of this size. And not from algae, Henry blinked in awe. There must be a magma pool directly beneath it, giving the water a gorgeous, orange glow that brightly illuminated the vast cave.

Or maybe, he smiled, it just seemed bright to him because he had not seen any brightness at all in a week. “I passed, didn’t I?”

Kismet turned her head, and when he caught his first actual glimpse at her Henry’s eye widened in surprise. He remembered the tattered rat with the clumped fur, cowering in her hunched-over position – dangerous and intriguing but still... well, old, and clearly not too keen on personal hygiene.

“Hey, you look great”, he threw at her and smiled. She smiled back sourly, her freshly tidied, sleek fur shone almost white in the glow of the lake.

“You know flattery isn’t going to help you, right?”, she grinned. “And you know very well you passed. You just want me to compliment you.”

Henry let out a snorting laugh and Kismet joined in. “Though I have to say – you DID do better than I expected you to. Not that it changes much about what’s to come.” She shook her head. “Even attempting this is... insane”, she hesitated, “I’ve never even...”

“Hey”, Henry kicked water in her direction. “Aren’t you overthinking this?” Kismet hissed as some of it landed on her and the exiled prince grinned. “Stop thinking for a SECOND, will you? Like, seriously...”

“I will... when you start thinking, for once.”

They both laughed.

The first time in forever climbing the cliff without the blindfold, the whole trip felt unreal to Henry. The only evidence he had was his incredibly full stomach and his moist hair.

Henry sighed as he pulled himself into the cave. He’d have to make the trip to that lake to fish at least twice a week from now on if he was to stay here. He was not passing any thresholds with only beetles for food.

“Henry!”, Kismet who had climbed in front of him called, from further into the cave, “Come here, now that you can see again, I want to show you something!”

Only when he had already reached her he realized he had not even lit his torch, but Kismet waited not for him to go back. She instead disappeared down the narrow staircase he had spotted on his first day here, and never ended up exploring.

With every step Henry’s anticipation rose, he could suddenly not wait to see what incredible secret she had hidden away down there, and to his eternal astonishment, he soon spotted a fiery glimmer ahead. When he squinted and turned the last corner at the bottom of the staircase, Henry’s jaw dropped for the second time that day.

He barely registered a lone brazier in the corner of the cave that must be at least double the size of the one above and gawked shamelessly at the densely covered, smooth walls. “You... did say the writing upstairs was nothing, right?”, he squeezed out as he took in the thousands of scratched-in words covering walls, and even parts of the floor and ceiling. The same type of simple elevator the rats used to fetch prisoners from their pits stood in the corner, and Henry thought she must use it to reach the ceiling as the cave was at least ten feet high.

“Oh I did.”

He tore his gaze away from the walls and blinked in surprise to see Kismet stood before him, holding a man-made book. Only now he registered a whole stack of them, almost as tall as the ceiling, took up the entirety of the far corner.

“Take a look, will you?” She laid out the book, a great, old tome that looked like it hadn’t been opened in years, and Henry knelt down to inspect it. He glanced at the page she’d opened and froze. It appeared to be an old human chronicle, and on the page in front of him was depicted a family tree. A very familiar one, too.

Henry’s hand hovered above the page, the picture must be ten years old at least, but back at him stared his own face, remarkably well painted.

“I...”, Henry swallowed and slowly raised his gaze, fervently trying to think of something to say, but to his surprise, Kismet shook her head. “Do not feel as though you need to explain. I was merely surprised the human, the outcast, who sought out my help, was royalty.”

“But...”, he rose to his feet again, “you took the time to find out! Why bother if you don’t –”

“Henry – or, should I say Prince Henry – you still don’t understand, do you? I did my research because I wanted to know more about you, not because it made any difference.” She gazed at him pensively, then shut the book. “Look, I am an excellent judge of character, I knew I would not get around teaching you from the very moment you first stood before me. And if I am supposed to teach you, I can do with any information I can get. Besides”, she grinned, “I thought you looked somewhat familiar.”

“You remembered me from this book.”

She nodded. “And I called you here today to show you because today marks the day from which on I must stop pretending I am not attempting to teach you anything. As... unfortunate as that is.”

Henry laughed, yet Kismet spoke on. “For once, I feel compelled to ignore the imminent risk of inflating your ego beyond reason and admit you’ve done excellently.” She smiled. “For as excellently as a human could ever do. And if it is indeed possible – if you and I can find a way to make it possible – I’ve no doubts you will one day surpass us all, in terms of perception. I’ve seldom ever seen one so in tune with their physical surroundings. It is quite remarkable.”

She turned and carried the book back over to the stack, then addressed him again – “What you lack is focus and attention, and of course there is that insatiable thirst for stimulation we must work on, but we will get to that soon enough. My point is, I will not attempt to make you quit anymore. Things will change. Not much, but they will.”

“Well, the lesson is whatever you end up learning, right?”

“It is”, Kismet stood in front of him again. “Be you prince or beggar, it matters little. What matters is that, whoever you were before, now you are my student. And as such I will treat you. Are we clear?”

Henry grinned. “Crystal clear.”


	9. Perspective

“They are actually not that bad, once you get used to them!”, Henry exclaimed, swallowing the last bit of his Firebeetle, “But, like, when I first heard I was supposed to eat bugs I nearly quit, of course, but then it was like, learn what you came here for or quit because of some stupid beetles, so I choked them down, and then I discovered you could steam them too, and they taste quite well when steamed. Want to try?”

Thanatos had not spoken a single word throughout Henry’s entire monologue, only stared at him, wide eyed. Then his glance darted at the beetle in his hand. “You... do know we fliers eat bugs regularly, right?”

Henry’s mouth, that had excitedly been standing agape, shut. “Oh, right. Well, anyway, I –”

“What he was trying to say”, Kismet interrupted as she appeared next to the flier, “is how incredibly proud he is to have gotten himself to eat them.”

“Oh shut up”, Henry mumbled and Thanatos laughed. “You know what, that does not surprise me.” His gaze darted to Kismet, “You’ve... really gotten him to practice some decent discipline, eh? I am... impressed, alright.”

“Well, thank you”, the rat snarled, “it was far from easy, let me tell you. Though, this boy needed discipline like a starving man food.”

“You can say that again”, Thanatos mumbled and Henry flung his hand in his direction. “Shut up, I said!”

The three sat in silence for a while and Henry stared into the flame of the torch he had put up in the middle of Kismet’s cave, then at Thanatos. Three times he had awoken, since the day he had passed the trial – he had kept careful note of it this time with the tally he had started next to where he had taken to sleep. And when he had woken this morning, the flier had sat in the entrance to Kismet’s cave, gazing at him like his presence here was not even remotely a big deal.

Henry was uncertain as to how to call the emotion that had swept over him at his sight – relief, perhaps. He felt much shame for it yet there had always been that small, nagging part of him that had adamantly insisted, despite his promise, that Thanatos was not coming back. To see him again had silenced the voice – how Henry hoped for good.

He had brought the promised plague vaccine, apparently a delegation of nibblers from the Fount had delivered a whole package of it to the colony in the jungle preemptively, along with it some for the Death Rider and his flier.

“So, you’ve spent the whole week at the colony?”

Thanatos nodded. “The first day I spent at the citadel as promised, then when you didn’t return I flew back to the jungle.” The flier at last accepted the Firebeetle Kismet silently offered him. “And, so”, he raised his head to look back and forth between Kismet and Henry, “you are... alright, here?”

“Absolutely!”, the exiled prince grinned, “It’s exhausting, and awful, and annoying at times, but for the first time in forever I actually feel like... I’m making genuine progress towards fixing my issue. Right?”, he glanced at Kismet who nodded. “He is stubborn, flakey, and unfocused, but... not hopeless, let’s call it that.”

“Oh come on”, Henry flung his hand in her direction, “I remember very well how you claimed I’d surpass you all at perception one day!”

“ONLY if we make this work”, she interjected, “and by “we” I mean “you”. Talking big is one thing, but I’ve told you many times this will not be easy. I am still not even certain if it is achievable for a human at all.”

Thanatos tilted his head, “So, what exactly is it now you can teach him?”

“A higher form of echolocation”, Henry replied, “she calls it a “second threshold”.” Kismet threw him a disapproving glance, then looked back at Thanatos and began explaining what she had told Henry before – her research into the topic, and the concept of multiple levels of echolocation.

“That’s...”, the flier stared at her with intrigue, after she had finished, “incredible, if it is truly possible.” His gaze darted back at Henry, “You are... staying, in that case?”

“Of course!”, the exiled prince jumped to his feet and began pacing. “I’ve already improved my senses so much from that one week without my eyesight, I’m not giving up now that I’m basically just getting started!”

“Do not call it “improving” senses, please”, Kismet interjected, “that is not how it works. You can hone them with practice and focus, but you can not physically improve them.”

“Yeah, yeah”, Henry muttered and plopped back down between her and Thanatos. “So that’s the deal”, he concluded, eye on the flier, and hesitated before he finally asked the one question that had burned on his mind ever since Thanatos had returned – “And... what about you?”

The flier visibly stiffened. “I... might go back to the jungle, for the time being. It is rather peaceful, and I...”, yet Henry interrupted him – “You’re leaving AGAIN?!”

Thanatos winced. “I... my claim still stands, I’ve no place here, Henry.”

The exiled prince stared at him helplessly, then turned to Kismet. “He can stay, right?”

“I have no issue with that”, she shrugged, “yet is it any good to force him?” She narrowed her eye at Thanatos, inspecting him through the vision aid she had raised, then sighed. “You believe you will only be in the way, that you will be useless here. And though I doubt you’d be in the way of anything, it is not like I can offer you anything where you can be of use either.”

Henry caught the hint of a smile on her face, “I will not allow your bond to be harmed, of that I assure you. But only you can ever decide what you wish to do.”

> _ Log 1/Day 11, after lunch _

> _I’m going to die. No, really. If THIS is how it’ll be from now on, I am definitely going to die. The fact I’m writing this should be proof enough. But with how things are, I’ve two options. I can either 1) scream at the top of my lungs until either my eardrums burst or I run out of breath or 2) at least WRITE it all down. For... practical reasons, I have chosen the latter._

> _FIRST of all – this is not a damn diary or any of that sentimental bs. It’s a log for private thoughts, as I’m apparently not entitled to privacy anymore, not with THAT kind of schedule anyway (yeah I am cramming this into my notebook that’s more than two thirds full already, unsure if this was the best idea, but where else am I supposed to write? On the walls? Jk they’re also taken up. Kismet likes her carvings)._

> _So, yeah – Kismet. She is great in a lot of ways, we’re so different but we also kind of... I don’t know, click? There’s this weird, impalpable level on which we just go together really well. And then there is the rest of the time, when I’m honestly unsure whether I’d rather laugh, or facepalm, or cry. Or all of the above. Maybe that one._

> _FOR ONE – she had no right to send Thanatos away. Like, I don’t get it. I have ~~never~~ seldom gotten anything less, in fact. Why is he so unwilling to stay? I get he’d only be sitting around here, but it’s not like he’s not sitting around at the nibbler colony too. He’s that weird look whenever he speaks of leaving, I don’t get it. I’m... I refuse to believe he seeks an excuse to be away from me. We aren’t like that. I’m just... Ugh. I want to talk to him, like, I really do, but what am I supposed to say? It makes no sense what he said to Hamnet, and I can hardly admit to eavesdropping either._

> _Maybe... maybe I’m imagining things, I don’t know. But maybe I am, and once I’ve dealt with this bs here, it’ll be as before again. Like after I bought him back from the spinners, that time. You know what, that’s exactly what’ll happen. I’ll get this stupid threshold, and then the problem will be solved – cause the problem is my lacking fighting skills, right? That’s why we can’t go out there and do stuff anymore, or so he claims. And if this is anything like Kismet promised, it WILL solve that. And along with it, all the other weird issues we seem to have. Definitely._

> _Regardless, Thanatos left yesterday. He didn’t even stay overnight. Instead, Kismet finally spilled a couple things I wanted to note down, cause I doubt she’ll ever repeat any of it._

> _So, apparently this threshold lets you use echolocation in battle because it gets rid of the need to make your own sound to see stuff. Like, no snapping fingers anymore! Apparently, echolocation works with EVERY sound (as long as the frequency is right, so Kismet). There was this weird, confusing term she used to describe it... right, she called it “the ability to see sounds”. Doesn’t that sound crazy? You just gotta practice, and here comes the reason as to why I will DEFINITELY DIE soon – LISTENING. Yeah, just... listening. Directional hearing, differentiating noises, blah, blah, BLAH._

> _So, the trial week sucked in some regard, but it also didn’t suck, cause it was new and exciting stuff (save the ten still minutes part) – and YOU GUESSED it, THAT is the part we’ll do MORE of now. MUCH more. Cause “echolocation stands and falls with hearing, and humans happen to suck at it” (– Kismet)._

> _So, 1) I will DEFINITELY DIE soon, so I don’t know how wise it was to even start this log. But we’ll see. And 2) if I DON’T die, I might actually have found the solution to this eye issue. Except Kismet says it’s not certain whether a human CAN even develop well enough hearing to use foreign sounds for echolocation. So not even that’s a given._

> _Basically, everything’s FANTASTIC and I love the world :) NOT. Oh Kismet’s calling, some exercise, be back soon. If I live._

“So, which one is it?”

Henry’s head jerked up from where it had sunken against the wall. He tugged at the blindfold, glad Kismet couldn’t see he’d had his eye closed with it on. What had she asked for again?

“Uh... that one?”

He jumped as a loud crash sounded from her direction. “You didn’t even pay attention to what I asked, did you?”

Henry groaned and slipped the blindfold up. “Can I not go do the parkour instead? I’ve some great idea for how to expand it a bit, did I ever tell you I –”

“Henry, the parkour is not the reason you are here, is it?”

He gave a loud sigh. “Yeah, but... like, it all sounds the same. I get you can differentiate things by the noise they make but rock on rock is rock on rock. Does the size even matter?”

“Of course it matters”, Kismet hissed and stepped over the two rocks she had simultaneously dropped, in his direction. “And I know you find this tedious, but there is no echolocation if your hearing is not distinct enough. Even I had to practice up before I could go so far as to use foreign sounds for echolocation, and my hearing is miles better than yours.”

Henry suppressed a frustrated sigh. If she compares me to herself one more time... “But the stupid rocks sound the same, is my point!”

Kismet eyed him pensively, then shook her head. “Maybe they wouldn’t if you were properly trying, instead of thinking about that parkour.”

Maybe I WOULD be properly trying if the task was more exciting than differentiating one rock sound from another, Henry grimly thought as he got to his feet. “Anyway, I’m hungry. We can do this again later. Or maybe something else. Preferably something else.” He stretched and audibly yawned, thinking he’d much rather have spent the morning at the lake fishing than here. Listening to... rock sounds.

“Hey, I was not done with you yet!”, Kismet cried after him but he’d already sprinted up towards the hot springs, somewhat incited by the anticipation of food, even if it was only Firebeetles. Yet by the time Henry had placed them on the rim of the searing spring, Kismet had caught up to him. “You can not just walk away like that”, she hissed and the exiled prince groaned.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

He inevitably turned her way and pressed his lips together when he saw the disappointment in her expression. “You are bored, I get that”, she sighed, “but it is you who wants to learn from me. And for that, you will not get around doing some things you might not find so stimulating.”

“It’s not SOME things, it’s EVERYTHING!”, he exclaimed, crossing his legs. “Ever since the stupid trial ended you’ve not had me do a single even remotely exciting thing. All it’s been was stupid concentration on even stupider things. Can’t we do something more...”, he groaned and began flailing his hands through the air, “I don’t know, more active?”

Kismet silently stared at him for a moment, then sat down reluctantly. “And what if I tell you there is nothing exciting or active to learning echolocation?”, she asked and Henry pressed his lips together, staring at the floor.

“You’ve passed the first threshold, have you done anything exciting then?”, she shot at him and Henry didn’t bother looking up. Of course it hadn’t been exciting. But it had only been an hour a day, not –

“Improving echolocation involves maximizing your sensory abilities, over achieving harmony with your physical environment, to finally combine the two by discovering you can use one to understand and evaluate the other. It is a highly complicated mental process that requires a great amount of self-discipline and intuitive ability, and running an obstacle course will certainly not help.”

To Henry’s dread her words brought with themselves a wave of fresh self-doubt. It engulfed him like an icy tidal wave and he clenched his fists.

“If you thought you had what it took simply because you passed the trial, you are gravely mistaken.” Each of Kismet’s words stung like a needle to his already clogged throat. “I told you many times, I can not yet tell if this is even –”

“I GET IT, okay?!” Henry at last met her eye, even though she was not looking at him properly as she had not her vision aid. “I get it. I’m trash at this. That’s enough rubbing it in, I GET IT.” He desperately blinked to quench the uprising tears.

“I...”, she seemed taken aback, “I did not say that.”

“OF COURSE you said that!”, he cried and leaped up. His foot hit the rim of the hot spring and the beetles he had laid out fell into the sizzling water. “Dammit – AGH, maybe you’re right, you know?” With every second it became harder and harder to hold back the tears, “maybe I’m not cut out for this. Maybe I shouldn’t have come here, maybe I should have –”

“Oh pup, will you stop that?” Before he could storm off, Kismet’s tail had wrapped around his waist, pulling him back. “You’re jumping to conclusions, as always. We can not yet tell whether you’re cut out for this, but if you give up now, we will never find out.”

He defiantly stared into her squinted eye. “So what if you truly ARE cut out for this”, she continued “but end up never learning it because you quit prematurely? Wouldn’t that be worse than sucking it up now?”

Henry groaned, and Kismet gave a sour smile. “Besides, doesn’t our contract only end with your own satisfaction? I will hereby take the liberty to interpret that as me having a right to use any means to make you stay until it is fulfilled. So struggle all you want, I’ve already invested too much in you for you to just quit now.”

“Hey, that was never part of the deal!”

“Yet it is a sensible clause to add. And you never even wrote our contract out, so you can hardly argue it is not interpretable.”

“Oh come on, you can’t do that!”, Henry struggled in her grasp but she held him tightly. “I can, it is one of the simplest principles of contracts. And now fish your food out of the spring, will you? Before it explodes from pressure.”

Two minutes, Henry thought, glaring at the hourglass he had snatched from Kismet. Maybe a bit over two minutes. Pathetic. He gritted his teeth and picked up the hourglass. This time he’d finish faster. Before the sand from his previous attempt had ran back through.

With one swift motion Henry turned the hourglass, it clanked on the stone as he dropped it and pulled down his blindfold the same moment he sprinted forward. One, two steps, then a flying leap over the boulder he’d stumbled on so many times yet never removed, out of sheer spite.

One, two, three, four, then turn right. One, two, tight space, he automatically twisted his body to slip through the nook and came out on the other side moments later. One, two, three – jump, Henry confidently landed on the rock in front of him, then leaped again, to land on the next one. Then a smaller leap for the third one. For a second he nearly lost balance as this one was the narrowest of them all, but finally stretched his arms forward and jumped for the last rock. His foot barely touched it as he propelled himself upward, stretching his hands out.

He barely caught the rim of the tunnel ahead and pulled himself up, one, two, three, four, five – he crawled then reached ahead, felt the edge of the tight shaft, and pulled himself out.

He leaped to the floor and darted forward, ten steps he counted, had it taken him more it would have been bad. He twisted right again and counted. One, two – he felt the path become narrower and narrower and stretched his arms sideways to keep his balance on the edge that couldn’t be more than a couple inches wide. Six steps, then a flying leap and a landing, there it was, the final stretch.

Henry darted forward leaning right, instinctively following the slight curve of the path. He sensed the firm contour of stone beneath his soles and picked up even more speed. Seven steps he’d counted, four more until –

“So you indeed took my hourglass. I was wondering where it had gone.”

Henry cried as Kismet’s tail wrapped around his waist. “HEY not fair, let me go!”, he cried, “I’ve not checked my time –”

“The sand is nearly all through”, she snarled, “yet if your goal was to finish before it had run out, you made it. Just about.”

“Well, at least that”, Henry stumbled forward as she released him.

“Have I allowed you to run the parkour, by the way?”

“Do I need your permission now?” Henry raised his blindfold and glared at her. “For all I’m aware you don’t rule my life, and it... helps me relax, okay?”

Kismet laughed. “Okay, fine, you’re all about the physical, I got that.”

“At least let me have that if you’re going to make me listen to rock noises all day”, Henry grumbled as he began his ascent up the cliff.

“Well, I did let you now.”

“Yeah, FOR TWO ROUNDS!”

“Just keep climbing”, Kismet behind him laughed. “We’ve a long day ahead of us. And it’ll not be very physical, I’m afraid.”

> _ Log 2/Day 28, before bedtime _

> _Didn’t I at some point tell myself I would be doing this daily? It’s been like, three weeks now, and I... Oh well, it’s not like anyone’s monitoring me. I just... didn’t have time to write, or THINK. Or BREATHE. I swear I’ve never been so exhausted in my whole life, though I’ve barely done anything physically straining over the last weeks._

> _It’s like there’s this permanent mist in my head. It’s better in the morning but as soon as training starts it becomes unbearable. Listening, focusing, sitting still, sitting still. SITTING STILL. I’m tired of sitting still. It’s hard to focus. It’s hard to even hear anything, sometimes. Kismet complains I’m bad at focusing. Well YEAH, YOU try focusing with a damn misty cloud in your head! Just about now I’d give anything for a day to just... exercise. Or run. Or MOVE, in whatever way, be it hauling stupid rocks up a stupid cliff._

> _I’m just so... like, every day I go to bed I have to remind myself over and over why I’m here. There’s the island, and the image of the sword leaned by the entrance to the cave. I want to be back there, on some days. And then I hate myself for wanting to be back there. I’m not even sure how it feels like anymore, to hold a sword. To swing. To sense the impact. To think I’ve come here to regain my fighting skills... Will I ever even find out again, how it feels like, or will it remain that useless piece of steel it is now? For as it’s going now, I’ll go with option two._

> _Thanatos actually visited yesterday. I should probably be happy, but I was more happy about the breaking up of the stupid routine. It’s not like I wasn’t glad to see him, but I... I’m not even sure why he bothered coming, honestly. It’s not like he’s staying. It’s not like he’s achieving anything by “checking in” on me, as he claims._

> _He’s mostly staying at the colony, but also exploring around it. The land by the citadel and that area. Ha, he’s even said something about a tunnel leading down, to below the waterway. Is there even anything below the waterway? He’s not explored it yet, but I guess I’ll have SOME news to look forward to whenever he comes back. IF he comes back._

> _I’m finding myself imagining him just never returning, flying off and never coming back. It’s an odd feeling, like an enormous boulder crushing my chest. I just want things to be like before. Just ditch this stupid threshold and leave, leave with Thanatos, and have things be like before. It’s when I make myself aware that’s impossible when the mist really takes over._

> _ Log 3/Day ~~999999999999999~~ _

> _Someone get me out of here, please..._

> _ Log 4/Day 31, early morning _

> _...alright, I may or may not have just been really close to throwing this whole notebook into the boiling hot spring. Maybe. Before, you know, I remembered there’s other stuff in here besides the journal entries. And before I get too tempted disregarding the sketch on the back of the first entry and tear out the pages to throw them in separately, hear this –_

> _I found it._

> _I wasn’t even looking for it or anything, looking for a book Kismet sent me to fetch last night. Got to get it before she wakes up and complains I haven’t gotten it yet. And there was the book, of course, down in the cave with the trillion carvings in the book mountain,(where else). But there was also... nevermind. Gotta go. Gotta try something. Haven’t been so excited in forever, you know?_

> _Wait... who am I even talking to?_

The silence was unbroken. So unbroken as it hadn’t been in a long time. A month it must now be. A month of –

The rat’s ears twitched as there suddenly was a noise. From far, far up it sounded, and her eye slowly opened. Then her head rose. Something was happening. Something that sounded unlike anything she had expected to hear... ever again.

The rat silently dropped her book, then crept up the stairs and peeked her head out into the cave. No, she paused, the sound came not from here. It came from somewhere outside.

She began making her way toward the cliff, toward the sound, and a couple seconds later she had descended down. She noiselessly crept forward and followed the sound through a narrow tunnel that spiraled upward until it mounded in a large cave, triple the size of the one she lived in – and stopped. Her claw unclasped the pocket on the broad leather belt she had taken to wearing and slipped into the loop of the vision aid.

She stood frozen in the entrance of the tunnel and stared down into the enormous cavern. It stretched some fifty feet ahead and maybe five feet below the tunnel entrance ran a steaming creek. But the water was not what captured her attention.

“Oh NO YOU DON’T!”

Her ears twitched and her claw curled tighter around the loop of the vision aid. “That, and that, and THAT!”

Henry swung his sword with both hands, over and over at the tower-like stone structure rising in the middle of the cave. It was a full twenty feet tall but narrow and uneven. Her eye squinted, to see why there was no sound of metal on stone, then widened again. Not a single of his blows at the stone ever landed.

His blade halted inches before every time, and as she quickly understood he followed a predetermined choreography. Right up, left down, backhand left up, around and right down, then step around and middle up, other side middle down. And then back. And repeat.

The rat sat in the tunnel entrance for what must have been a few minutes, observing. Then a loud crash sounded and she jumped so much her claws audibly scraped on the stone to prevent herself from falling.

Henry below, who had struck the stone with the sword, nearly dropped it, cried and jumped around in her direction, frantically pulling at his blindfold. “K– KISMET?!” They stared at each other for a few heartbeats. “I... I mean I can –”

“Oh, no need to explain.” She lowered the vision aid. Her heart beat at least twice as fast as it should. “Just... be back in time for breakfast, will you? But take as long as you like!” With that, she disappeared back in the tunnel entry, leaving Henry to stare after her, wide eyed.

Yet as soon as she was certain he could not see her anymore, she stopped, and ducked to peek back. Henry stood with his sword hanging limp at his side for another half a minute or so, his face painted with so many conflicting emotions they were hard to tell apart. Then he slowly raised the blade back up, and pulled down the blindfold.

Instantly, the rat darted out of the tunnel entry. She silently leaped down, avoiding the creek, and landed softly, undetected by Henry who was all taken up by his exercise again. She stopped for a moment to survey for a fitting lose rock, then crept toward it and gave it a focused, controlled push.

Henry did not see it. How could he, with the blindfold on? Yet when he registered a scraping in his periphery something in his brain instinctively processed what it was. His legs moved on their own, sending him flying over the rolling rock, to land and nearly stumble over the uneven terrain.

But his brain was still in attack mode. His head darted up when he heard another scraping sound. It wasn’t a rock, it was something else. His mind flashed to his ten still minutes exercise and he darted forward with his sword raised – it was claw on stone.

Henry cried as the blade was neatly flung from his hands and stumbled forward until a tail had him by the waist. He frantically pulled at the blindfold and stared into the rat’s puzzled face.

More than half a minute later she finally released him and drew back, raising her vision aid slowly. “Well.” Something about the way she looked at him unsettled and excited Henry at the same time. “Look at you...”

His teeth clenched and he rubbed his aching wrist. “Yeah. I’m wasting my time, and should go back to training. I know.”

“I was actually referring to how you just dodged that boulder, and then attacked me. Blindly.”

“Oh that”, Henry’s eye darted at the rock he had leaped over. “That... was an accident...”

To his surprise, Kismet broke into laughter. “There are no accidents. Only lessons. And the lesson is –”

“Is always what you end up learning, I know.” He eyed his sword that still lied behind Kismet.

“Yes”, she gazed at him pensively. “And the lesson I just learned was that I was... being too narrow-minded in this.” She sighed and half-turned from him, “I must apologize to you, Henry.”

He stared at her wide-eyed. Was this... really happening? Was the blunt, proud, unapologetic Kismet actually... His mouth opened, yet before he could speak, she continued – “You must understand, as... new and uncomfortable as all this is for you, it is not much easier for me either. I have... had my own difficulties trying to figure out how to teach this... this... concept of a technique I have somehow mastered myself a long time ago to someone else. And it has not been...”, she looked back at him, “easy. To say the least. I was so focused on attempting to push you down the same path I had gone myself back then, yet that is not the way.”

Henry frowned. His head spun, trying to wrap itself around what she was saying, but she beat him to speaking again. “The lesson you have just taught me is, that I can not teach you the way I taught myself.” With a flicker of her tail she catapulted his sword in the air, then caught it in mid-air. “I now see that the way to get through to you... is with this.”

He stared at her, then at the sword she extended. “But... I thought...”

“I thought so too”, she snarled, “yet we were both wrong. And what you just demonstrated overshadowed anything I ever saw of you, so I will admit I have learned my lesson, as you have yours, I hope.”

For a moment longer Henry stared at the sword, then slowly extended his hand to grasp the hilt. His eye met Kismet’s and with one swift motion he pulled his blindfold down.

> _ Log 5/Day 31, before bedtime _

> _THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE!! I still can’t believe this day just happened like this. I mean, I’d basically given up hope at this point, but it’s all going to be GREAT from now on. You know why? Because I’m actually way better at this than I thought (or Kismet, for that)._

> _I’d found my sword where she’d hidden it away this morning and snuck it out to see if I could still use it at least, and then Kismet caught me, but she wasn’t angry or anything, quite the opposite. I think this was genuinely the first time she was actually... IMPRESSED with me, since I passed the trial. For some reason it’s so hard to stay focused when sitting still, but whenever I can apply and combine blind hearing/perceiving with a physical action it makes it... come almost naturally. It’s a WEIRD feeling, like my instinct’s taking over and reacts to sensory input faster than my brain can process it. I DO like it, but it’s also unnerving, like I’m not fully in control anymore. Kismet says it’ll get better though._

> _After she caught me we sparred for what must have been hours. I never knew actual blind fighting could be so much fun! Of course we had to agree to specific (sound) indicators for specific attacks, but from that point on it basically becomes – identify the sound, process what it indicates, and react accordingly. And man did I become good at it really quickly. Kismet didn’t even make that much noise, later on. I think she purposely made less and less noise so that I had to listen closer, but honestly, it was not that hard._

> _For lunch she took me back to the lake FINALLY, I’ve not had time to come there for at least a week. Actually, yeah, I remember it was day 25 when we last went, 5+1 marks on my tally ago. And there we also fought, but that time it was in shallow water and with less indication. The water makes so much noise it’s easy to dodge though. And then back at her cave she chased me through the entire obstacle course. Except the narrow part, but you know. The mixed terrain makes it harder to dodge and attack, but it’s SO much more fun to figure all this out on the go, instead of tediously sitting still, trying to understand it without active application._

> _Actually, it weirdly reminds me of when I was training to beat the blood balls. It was... in a way, very similar. Physical application combined with theory. Though of course this is much larger and much more complicated, it still... feels sort of the same._

> _OKAY, yeah, she... did not seize criticizing my actual fighting skills for a SECOND. Apparently, my footwork is “atrocious”, I’m not wielding the sword to its “maximal potential”, and I’ve no balance or steadfastness whatsoever. Apparently we gotta work on that some, in the future. Or a lot, according to her. Then again, whenever she criticizes me from now on, all I have to do is think about how she APPOLOGIZED to me earlier, claiming I had TAUGHT her a lesson. Ha, that will never not be satisfying._

> _I had never thought about it, but apparently she didn’t really know how to do this whole “teaching”-thing either. Which... shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise, considering she’s not really a teacher, and I kind of just... barged into her life, demanding her to teach me. But oh well, guess we’ll all treasure it as a valuable experience. Maybe. Actually still unsure on that one. I guess all she needed was a change in perspective. And... maybe I too._

> _Also, honestly, I don’t really care that much anyway, when she says we have to work on my fighting skills. If she wants to add combat lessons to our training, she can do that any day. In fact, isn’t that why I came here in the first place?_

> _But yeah, I’ve not put my sword down a single time today, and I never thought I could be so happy just over that. Though the best part is – all Kismet’s been preaching this last month, all I was supposed to have figured out long ago – it all makes sense suddenly. It’s like it just... sat there, in the back of my head, waiting for me to activate it. Waiting to click._

> _And MAN is it satisfying when it then does!_


	10. Threshold

There she was. Henry’s head twitched, his grip on the handle of his sheathed sword tightened and he instinctively raised it until – “CRACK”, the noise the stone made when it met the sheath rang unpleasantly in his ears but Henry blocked it out, it was not the sound he had to focus on.

He raised the sword again and fell back into guard, then focused on further away. There, a claw scraped stone behind him and he turned, taking care not to fall. If I fall here, it’ll be over, he shuddered when he remembered he was standing on a narrow pillar, twenty feet above ground. To think how he had first come here to beat this very pillar with his sword from frustration, and now... now Kismet knew about this cave too, and she found it was nothing short of perfect for their training. Well, of course she did.

He barely got his sword up in time to block the next stone, and bit his lip. This was not ideal, he had blocked, not combining it with an attack as he was supposed to. _Every time you apply your sword you damage your opponent_ , Kismet’s voice rang in his head, _you must beat it into your skull most of your opponents will not be armed. So even when you block, you attack. Make use of every contact your blade has with your opponent._

Henry frowned and forced himself back into focus. The bare soles of his feet dug into the ground beneath firmly and he took a deep breath. Like roots, he thought, like roots sprouting from your soles. _Your attack can only ever be as powerful as your stance,_ Kismet’s voice snarled in his ear, _you are not on the back of your flier anymore. Only if you stand firmly you can attack firmly as well._

Henry forced himself to focus on his stance and consciously synched it up with the way he held his blade. _It is not a foreign piece of steel, it is part of your body, and should be treated as such. You will not randomly extend an arm or a leg while the rest of your posture is harmonized, so why should you do it with a sword?_ Henry took a conscious breath and slowly turned, guard up, to follow the sound of Kismet, twenty feet below on the ground. When she hurled the next two rocks immediately after each other, he struck them effortlessly.

“So hey!”, he then yelled and relaxed somewhat, tugged at his blindfold, then twirled his sword around niftily, “Can we go back to the lake after we’re done here? I’m starvi– AAGH!”

Henry heard Kismet’s laughter only in his periphery as he stumbled back from the rock she had thrown his way entirely without warning and caught himself only in the last second before he would have fallen. “HEY!”

“Do not speak like the exercise is over, pup”, she snarled from below and Henry cursed as he slowly regained his balance and raised the sword back up. He barely reacted in time when the next indicative sound came from maybe ten feet left of where he had last heard her voice, and the next rock flew at him instantly.

“As for your question”, she had moved again and Henry twisted to follow her, “we can go.”

This time he struck the stone she hurled most elegantly, and even fell back into a decently steadfast position afterward.

“If you can hit the next five rocks as well as you just did that one.”

Henry did not answer. He lifted his sword higher instead, feeling every nook and crack of stone acutely beneath the soles of his feet. If that was all it took, Henry nearly laughed, he had already won.

“I can not fathom how you still have energy for that damned parkour after a whole day of combat practice.”

Henry grinned in Kismet’s direction and plopped down beside the torch he had put up to grill the fish he had caught at the lake earlier. “It’s called being in good shape!”

“Physically maybe”, she shot back and raised her vision aid from the book she had been reading to look at him. “Yet you’re as flakey as ever, mentally. And though you’re making progress, you still more often than not move like a dancer not a warrior, when you fight.”

Henry death glared her, then determinately stabbed Mys into his fish to gut it. “Oh yeah? Well, as you know, I beat Goldfang when –”

“DO NOT begin that story again”, she hissed with unnerve, “you have told it more times than I want to count, and how Goldfang could ever sink so low she allowed herself to be defeated by YOU is a mystery I’d very much wish to solve. I mean, she was never the greatest warrior, but still. Killed by a human pup who prances and skips around like a frolicking child when he swings his sword...”

“I defeated her as I defeated the blood balls”, Henry hissed, “one side at a time.”

“Oh yes”, she laughed, “now THAT is an exercise I’d love to try one day.”

“Did it inspire the one where you throw rocks at me, by any chance?”

“Well”, Kismet grinned in his direction, “if I do not have any cannons, I must do it by hand, eh?”

Henry grinned and nodded, then gathered up the innards of the fish he had removed before aiming and expertly hurling them through the cave entrance and down the cliff. “Besides”, he shrugged and placed the fish on his improvised grill, “I’m getting better with the whole stance issue. You said that yourself”, he turned to her, “I’m getting better at everything!”

Kismet hesitated, then sighed and looked up at him. “You are. But you’ve a long way to go, still. It is true you’ve a much better link with your senses at this point than most humans ever develop in their whole life, but that is only the first step. I can not even begin to tell how long it will possibly take you to actually pass the threshold.”

Henry bit his lip and stared at his slowly sizzling fish. Then his gaze darted at the corner where he slept, and the wall beside it. In the flickering light of the torch he had to squint to even make out the lines of the tally he had somehow squeezed in between Kismet’s own carvings. It had been one of the emptiest walls in the whole cave, yet eighty seven lines required much space. His lips pressed together when he pictured himself tomorrow, opening his eyes, and making the eighty eighth line.

“I know you’re impatient”, Kismet sighed, “but this is not something to be rushed. You came here, fully knowing this could take years, and you took that risk because you thought it worth it. Ain’t it so?”

“I... guess”, Henry stabbed at his fish listlessly. “But I...”

“Why ARE you even rushing yourself so?”

Henry frowned, yet before he could respond, Kismet spoke on – “There is nowhere urgent you must be, is there? So take it easy, one step at a time, and one day it will all pay off.”

Henry’s jaw clenched. His mind reeled back to day sixty five when Thanatos had last visited. It had been more than twenty days now, since he –

“I just don’t want to sit around here forever”, he mumbled, but Kismet cut him off – “Oh you are certainly not “sitting around”, at least not as far as I’m aware. And if you still feel like all of this is not “active” enough for your liking, you can –”

“No, I’m good”, Henry sighed and stretched his limbs. He’d almost gotten used to being stiff and sore and bruised all over. Then again, this was a laughable price to pay for the kind of training methods Kismet had taken to experimenting with recently, as opposed to what she had tried during his first month here.

“Good”, she snarled, and Henry swiftly plucked his fish from the grill to eat. “You know the drill then. Eat up, then go sit out your hour. And maybe at least TRY to focus for once, instead of whatever else you’re doing up there usually.”

> _ Log 26/Day 87, before bedtime _

> _So... okay, maybe I DID exaggerate a bit last time. Maybe she actually thinks this’ll amount to something in the end, as opposed to it being “sheer and utter bullying with the sole purpose to annoy me”. Ten still minutes served a purpose. What a still HOUR is supposed to amount to, I’ve not a clue._

> _Eh, I’ve been complaining about it for like ten logs in a row now and it still doesn’t feel like enough. It’s not like anyone will ever read these, though, so who cares. But... alright, let’s try. Let’s honestly try._

> _Reasons Kismet could have to send me to sit still in an empty cave for an hour a day:_

  * > _~~to bully me~~ no wait, I just said I would NOT assume that one for once_

  * > _to... ~~improve~~ train my senses even more?? _




> _But how would that even work? I know the first time around, when it was only ten minutes, it helped me learn the whole directional hearing schtick. But this is an HOUR. And Kismet’s not even THERE to monitor me. Or... I think so, at least. Who really knows. Well, she’s not giving me sound cues to focus on, is my point. All she told me the first time was to sit up on that stupid pillar we always train on and... listen? Focus? I’m not sure what she was referring to, actually. Maybe I should ask..._

> _And here I was, thinking she finally understood I’m NOT THE SILENT TYPE. We’ve had such a perfectly synced thing, for the two weeks between her catching me with my sword and the first iteration of still hour. And then she goes and ruins it._

> _If this is really in any way going to help me with the stupid threshold, it better do so soon. I’ve been thinking... next time Thanatos visits, I’ll ask what he’s up to, and maybe come with. Like, I’ve come here to be useful in battle again, and would you look at that, I AM useful in battle again. Sure, there’s not been any threshold passing yet, but... I can actually wield my sword again, even without my eyes. Have not field tested it yet, maybe I should... but regardless, I’m better at it than I was before, right? And, like, as awesome as it would be... in that case, do I even NEED this threshold?_

> _Not if it’ll take another ten years or so, I don’t. Our contract ends with my own satisfaction, eh? Well, so... what if I already am satisfied?_

One... two... three... With a flicker of his wrist Henry caught his sword in midair and turned, digging his heels into the ground. _You’re rooted in place,_ Kismet sounded in his head.

“Good, now toss it over here”, the rat’s actual voice came from his right and Henry inhaled deeply, took a swing, and threw the sword in the air. One... two... three... he silently counted and heard her catch it, precisely on four.

“Excellent”, she snarled and the blade clanked to the floor. “Now that dagger. Left to right, then over to me.”

Henry released his breath and unsheathed Mys. As he turned towards Kismet’s voice he hurled the dagger upward. One... two... three... four... his right hand stretched and closed around the handle perfectly. A mere heartbeat later the dagger flew at Kismet. One... two... three... four... there it was, Henry smiled as the faint clanking of metal on stone sounded when she dropped it to the floor as well.

This time, she did not announce herself and Henry’s head jerked around when her claw scraped on stone to his left. In the last second he ducked away and to the right, dodging her outstretched paw. Henry nearly lost balance and had to reach for the familiar pillar to steady himself before he straightened out his blindfold and scrambled to his feet.

Her attack came from the right this time and Henry leaped in the air, catching himself well enough and digging his feet into the floor to not fall. Once darting over her sweeping tail, then ducking under her paw, there she was. Henry rammed his foot into her side with all his strength and Kismet cried and faltered for a moment, which he used.

In a single leap he was on her back, wrapping his legs around her torso tightly, then he closed his grip around the roots of her ears. Her body beneath him swayed and Henry pulled on her left ear, she instantly reeled left and he let out a triumphant scream, before something suddenly tightened around his waist.

“Hey not fair, let me go!”, Henry cried and laughed as she tore him off her back with her tail.

“That was excellent”, she only snarled, then dropped him. “Now catch.” Henry barely scrambled up in time to count and close his hand around the hilt of Mys, closely followed by his sword.

“See, all it takes is a little understanding of physics and some counting, and you can perform the most marvelous tricks with your weapons without the need to look whatsoever.”

“Yeah, yeah”, Henry mumbled and pulled up the blindfold, squinting at Kismet in the sparse light from the creek. “What about it, we done for today?”

“After you’ve sat out your hour up there, we are.” The tip of her tail twitched upward and Henry suppressed a groan. “Okay”, he sheathed his sword and Mys in the same heartbeat, “but... why?”

“Why?”

“Yeah”, he bit his lip, glaring up the wretched pillar. “Why the HELL are you making me do that, actually? Like, ten still minutes had its purpose, but why –”

“BECAUSE”, she interrupted, pushing him at the pillar, “you must learn to endure the lack of action. As much as you are improving at perception, balance, and raw physical skill, your mental abilities are as lackluster as ever. And even if you would love for it to be so, you will not pass the second threshold of echolocation with mere physical skill.”

“So you’re basically just doing it to bully me.”

“Precisely. Now get your hide up there, and get to it. The faster you do so, the faster you’ll be done. And besides”, she let out a mix between a laugh and a scoff, “who’s saying there is no action? You always have the rush of water to focus on. Who knows, maybe one day you’ll learn to hear the rise of tides. That is, if your attention span can ever evolve to exceed that of a five year old.”

Henry shot her a last death glare and effortlessly climbed the pillar. He pulled himself onto the little plateau on top, and as soon as he had made sure Kismet was on her way out, he grinned.

Why didn’t I do this sooner, he internally rubbed his hands and pulled out his notebook he had hidden beneath his shirt. Henry sat on the pillar, cross-legged, and his grin widened as he twirled his pencil. Sure, his gaze darted to the creek, the lighting conditions weren’t ideal, but if the only other option was to sit silently doing nothing, the notebook was by far the better choice.

He thoughtlessly flicked through his latest log entries, contemplating whether it was worth writing another one now, then he hesitated and stopped, before determinately turning the book around and opening the last page. Henry barely made out the somewhat careless sketch in the dim light, but a grin instantly spread on his face. Right, he hadn’t had the time to finish this earlier. Well, now he had an hour of time.

The tip of his pencil hovered over the page, then he determinately began drawing, squinting to even make anything out. The whole time his heart beat out of his chest for some reason. If this ever works, he stared at the drawing with something like awe, if Teslas and I ever get around to building this... it will be like...

Then his lips pressed together and he shut the notebook. Well, more like if he ever convinced Thanatos to give it a shot. Henry went over all the arguments he had come up with in favor of it – _It’ll make us considerably stronger in battle! It’ll make fighting grounded enemies, especially if they don’t jump, so much easier! It’ll –_

Well, his jaw clenched and he mindlessly played with the tattered leather cover of the book, sure as hell this would work. If he doesn’t yell at me for being disrespectful first, and then stop listening altogether.

Henry swallowed, then put the notebook back under his shirt. Maybe it would be for the best to tear out that page altogether, to toss it into the hot spring. Maybe that way it would not haunt him anymore, and he would not have to live with not having realized it despite the countless opportunities it would bring. Because as of the current moment – or any moment, really – there was no way he’d ever even attempt to suggest this to Thanatos. He’d rather actually sit this stupid hour out silently.

> _ Log 31/Day 95, during still hour _

> _~~Alright, it’s been a full month now since Thanatos last visited so I actually wanted to note down some~~ _

> _Stuff to occupy yourself with during still hour:_

  * > _Doodling (fun, but a bit hard due to the sparse lighting)_

  * > _Writing logs (same as doodling)_

  * > _Kicking pebbles at a designated target (there’s a really nice dent in the floor for that, directly beside the creek)_

  * > _Making pebble towers (my record stands at 12, to be beaten... soon)_

  * > _Climbing the pillar up and down, looking for faster/better paths (it gets mundane quickly but this is a good starter for the first ten or so minutes)_

  * > _Practicing directional hearing by throwing rocks and determining how far they went or working on that technique Kismet showed me recently to slow your own heartbeat, making it easier to focus on external noises (this one only when I’m REALLY desperate)_




> _Hey would you look at that, I’m actually making lists of things to keep track of now. It’s desperate times, I guess._

> _Also, disregard that part about Thanatos, I don’t really care anyway. He can stay away all he wants, IF he wants. At least he has an excuse for it... well, somehow. Unlike Ares when he disappeared for a week straight some one and a half years ago. Apparently, he’d had some business in the flier’s land, and he DIDN’T EVEN TELL ME WHAT IT WAS, not even in retrospect! Some nerve..._

> _Regardless, Thanatos is right. What WOULD he be doing here? All I do is... directional hearing. And combat lessons. And whatever else Kismet comes up with. I swear she’s inventing these “lessons” on the go. She’s recently called me Odysseus (I think that’s how you spell it) for my passion for adventure, then corrected herself instantly, saying Odysseus (I could have sworn that’s how you spelled it) never actually wanted to go on any adventures. When I asked her who he was, she fetched that huge book, apparently, it’s called “The Odyssey”, a story by an ancient Overland writer (forgot his name, something with H I think)._

> _And MAN was that guy a genius, have to give him that. Kismet read that passage where Odysseus conducted the plan to stab that giant’s only eye out to me (for spite reasons, I think), and as strange as it was to hear, after what happened with my own eye, it was also pretty glorious. The guy was pretty awesome. Got no issues with her comparing us for sure. Though how he even thought of complaining about being sent on such a grand adventure is a mystery to me. Still, I DO like him. Just would like to have a word with him on that one part._

> _Now that I think about it... maybe I should ask her for the other names she’s called me so far. If I can remember them. Icarus... was it? And something else. Well, if I remember, I will. Who knows which other incredible stories she is hiding?_

“Alright, but... when can I get off of here?”

“You’ve another minute. Then it’s up to sit out your hour again.” Kismet’s claw audibly tapped the hourglass and Henry groaned, nearly losing balance in the process. Some of the water in the bucket on his head spilled and it dangerously swayed, only by raising his hand to support it he prevented it from falling.

“Hey, no hands allowed”, Kismet snarled and Henry rolled his eye, thankful the obligatory blindfold concealed it.

The silence pressed on his ears yet Henry was all taken up by keeping his balance. Standing on one leg, especially with something extra on your head, was unnervingly more difficult when you did it blindly. Apparently, the brain had no reference point if you couldn’t look at your surroundings, but it was all practicable. This particular exercise hadn’t been an issue in weeks at this point. The hardest part was how his leg tended to fall asleep if he had to stand on it for two minutes straight.

As soon as the hourglass clacked Henry sighed in relief, putting his second leg down and raising a hand to take off the water bucket in the same heartbeat. Kismet did not protest as he leaped down from the little pillar he’d been standing on and he grinned to where the sound of the hourglass had come from. “We good?”

“The hour, Henry”, she snarled and patted his back so hard he stumbled forward and released the water bucket to clank against the wall, spilling its contents. “You’re forgetting the – what is this?”

Henry instantly ripped the blindfold away and attempted to scramble to where his notebook he’d hidden under his shirt again had fallen, but Kismet was faster. With a single flicker of her tail she had snatched it up and when Henry looked back at her, her eye was narrowed. “Henry...?”

“I... can explain”, he muttered, yet saw by the expression in her eye she had long seen through him. Well, his lips pressed together, it had worked the last couple days. It had only been a matter of time.

“So... THIS is what you spend your time on, up there”, she waved the notebook in front of his face and Henry swallowed before scrambling up. But when he reached to take it, Kismet pulled back. “Not so fast.” Her eye was still narrowed, “You know, what I should do is tear this to shreds, for you so deliberately going against my orders.”

A jolt of panic darted through Henry yet before he could speak, she continued – “I will, however, refrain, this time. I will still confiscate it of course, and that until our contract is fulfilled. You hardly need a notebook for what we are doing. And know this, if I ever catch you doing anything remotely comparable, I WILL tear it up. Now go.”

She pointed towards the cave with the pillar and Henry listlessly began making his way there, not without throwing the rat a couple angry glances, as well as he could, with the sparse lighting. Where was he supposed to write his logs, if she had taken his notebook? Then an even worse thought crossed his mind, Henry turned back and opened his mouth but before he could tell her not to read the already written logs, the tip of her tail disappeared in her home cave.

Henry let out a frustrated groan. Well, this day had sure gone well so far. Not only had they had to postpone their planned trip to the lake due to unusual volcanic activity in the area, but now this.

Henry spotted the glow of the creek from afar and sprinted toward it, twirling the blindfold he’d taken off in his hand. Maybe they could go to the lake tomorrow, he pondered while climbing the pillar, and maybe he could continue the logs in his mother’s notebook. He’d have to be extra careful not to be caught though, or he would risk losing all his survival notes, his sketches, his doodles...

Henry swallowed as he crossed his legs atop the pillar, maybe he should postpone any log entries until he had gotten her to give it back. Who knew, maybe he could convince her to give it back for the rest of the time that wasn’t the still hour.

His lips pressed together and he twitched, trying to remember what he had noted down on his list of things to do up here, a couple days ago. Henry took a deep breath, and frustratedly shut his eye. Tomorrow... he nearly shook his head, tomorrow was... day one hundred.

Something in him felt incredibly unnerved by the thought, like he was taking way too long. Like he should have made progress by this point. Then again... wasn’t Kismet right when she said nobody was rushing him? Where had he even to go from here?

The realization that there was, in fact, nothing, was strangely sobering. The quest was over, Luxa and the others would long be back in Regalia, and Nerissa would not be queen anymore. It was the first time he spared his loved ones in Regalia a thought, since he had come here, and only now the conscious realization more than three months had passed since he had last seen them, hit him like a punch to the gut.

It didn’t feel like three months. Henry frowned, did it feel like more or less? To his own astonishment, he could not tell. A part of him thought years could have passed outside this little bubble Kismet and he existed in, and another thought it could not have been more than a couple weeks since he’d come here.

Was Gregor back in the Overland now? He must be. What had happened to Hazard, after Hamnet’s death? A knot tightened in his stomach when his thoughts reeled to Ares. Had he even survived? From the way Gregor had talked... the exiled prince bit his lip. Most likely not. The thought stung more than he had expected, then again... as he searched for leftover traces of anger at Ares for what he had done, to his own surprise he found none.

Sure, they had betrayed each other, but that was exactly it. They were... even. Their bond had miserably failed, but that didn’t mean Henry had wanted for him to die. Especially in that manner, especially before he had gotten the chance to... The exiled prince shook his head. This was stupid. He would not have been able to talk to him about it all regardless, not without giving away his identity. And that was out of the picture.

His lips pressed together. What else had there been? The rest of the conversation with Gregor during their walk through the jungle reeled before his inner eye and... of course, there was Nerissa.

The thought of her stung bittersweet, yet most urgently of all he asked himself why they had found it necessary to crown her queen, in Luxa’s absence. Nerissa was nearly two years younger than Henry, her sixteenth birthday was not for another half a year. Had the circumstances truly justified a premature coronation? How desperate had they all been, and why? And when... his eye jolted open, would he see them all again?

Henry winced as he heard the distinct sound of water dripping into the creek from somewhere. He frowned in irritation and tried to see where the dripping came from, but he spotted nothing. The exiled prince sighed, shrugged and mindlessly twisted the blindfold between his fingers. What had he –?

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

Henry shook his head to block out the irritating sound. His list, what had he written on –?

Drip. Drip. Drip.

“What’s your problem?!”, he barked at the creek, then reprehended himself for speaking to an inanimate object. Then again... it had never dripped before. Maybe he should look where... Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

Henry had already swung his legs over the rim of the plateau, then froze. He was not supposed to leave here before Kismet came to fetch him, and the first time he had tried that she had caught him almost instantly. Apparently, she could hear whatever was going on here from her cave. And as punishment she had doubled his time for that day.

Henry adamantly pulled his legs back. The was no way he was risking that again. One hour up here was bad enough.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The exiled prince groaned, death glaring the casually flowing creek. Little clouds of steam rose from it and he wondered how close the volcano that had erupted nearby actually was. The longer he focused on it, the clearer he heard the quiet sizzling of the steam.

Drip. Drip.

Henry’s head jerked up. Where had that come from? Those last few drips had been so pungent they could have come from mere inches away, yet there was no water anywhere close to him. Not even remotely. The exiled prince frowned, yet when he listened for more drips, he realized he barely heard them without focusing.

It’s somewhere on the far end of the cave, he thought, and shook his head. There must be a fresh leak somewhere, maybe it was caused by the volcanic eruption. He sighed and directed his gaze back to the stone beneath him. Maybe it was worth checking out whenever he was free to leave here again.

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

It was odd... Kismet had claimed the volcano hadn’t caused that much damage, only heated the lake until it boiled, so she wanted to wait for it to cool before she’d risk another visit.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The sizzling of the steam filled him up, like an insect it crept into his ears, Henry sniffed, half-expecting to sense the hot air on his face.

Drip. Drip.

His finger mindlessly traced a long crack in the stone, it vibrated with the sound that now permeated his every fiber. Like a hollow gong inside his chest. If only he knew where the wretched dripping came from...

Drip.

A jolt of shock ran through Henry’s body with the sound and his head jerked up. Then his gaze darted at the fingers of his right hand. He was almost entirely certain he had not snapped them just now, yet...

Henry gritted his teeth and suppressed the trembling. That sound... he identified a measly occasional dripping some twenty feet ahead. Had it really just...

His gaze darted at the blindfold he’d tied around his wrist, as he always did, in recent times. He needed it so much he barely ever took it off. A few heartbeats later he sensed the familiar fabric on his face and frowned. Usually, whenever he had this thing on, his other senses immediately snapped into focus mode, yet now...

It was the stupid dripping, Henry pressed his lips together and attempted to make it out.

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

How had that ever sounded so close? His fists were rigidly closed and every fiber of Henry’s body was tensed from the strange experience. His eye narrowed, how would he recreate it? He had been so lost in thought, he could not possibly remember what he’d been –

Or maybe... Henry consciously relaxed first his fists, then his legs, then his jaw, and the rest of his body, then took a deep breath. Maybe it hadn’t been what he had thought about, maybe it had been the part where he hadn’t paid attention to it.

That seemed to make little sense, though when he found his mind reeling with possible explanations he suddenly heard it again.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Henry had performed acts of balance daily, over the course of the last three months. He had balanced himself, then other things – his weapons, equipment, water, and so much other stuff he hardly remembered it all. He had stood firmly on the narrowest of pillars and edges for minutes straight. Yet it all not even remotely compared to the balancing act he found was required of him now.

Not physically, but mentally keeping the balance between conscious and absent so that he did not destroy the sensation by acknowledging it too explicitly, yet did not drift aimlessly into the vast sea of his subconscious, left him wanting to scream in agony.

He had no idea how much time passed, it might have been less than a minute or more than a day, when he had finally somewhat stabilized himself on razor’s edge.

Drip. Drip.

Somewhere in the back of his head he felt himself flush hot then cold, his palms and soles began tingling and with each drip he became more and more convinced his heart was not a galloping muscle but a sonorous gong someone was banging in synch with the drips.

Drip.

His eye he had closed jolted open, yet of course, this time he saw nothing. Except... that was not quite right either.

Henry sat stiller than he had ever sat. He needn’t make any noise. Like someone had turned up the volume of his surroundings, the previously agonizing silence suddenly made the noise for him. It wasn’t only a singular gong. It all... sizzled, and steamed, and creaked, and... breathed. Yet that was not what had captivated him so.

What did I ask myself, he managed to form somewhere on the edge of his consciousness... Right. He had wanted to know where the dripping had come from.

Drip.

The gong permeated his ears, vibrated every fiber of his being, and there it was... the leak. The water ran down a narrow slit between two stones in the ceiling, barely an inch wide. The volcanic eruption must have redirected a river somewhere above, as there was a steady supply of water seeping through the crack.

He perceived it as clearly as if it was happening directly before his eye, and not twenty feet away in the pitch dark, and the sole realization nearly cost Henry his balance. He forced himself to focus back on the sound, the sound only. How could he see where it came from?

Show me _,_ he adamantly thought, and as if it could understand him, the sound hit like a splash of color on a plain canvas, painting before him not only the image of the crack, but a strikingly detailed depiction of the whole cave.

Henry’s hand twitched yet he had taken to sitting on it to avoid further misconceptions. He had certainly not snapped his fingers just now. And yet the image that strikingly resembled what he saw whenever he used echolocation erased and recreated itself with every drip. It’s like the sound itself is materializing before me, he managed to conceive, it’s like... I am... seeing the sound.

Once more he was nearly thrown out of focus by the realization. Seeing sounds, the words mixed with the noises of his surroundings and Henry twitched, where had he heard that before? Seeing... _If there is any analogy to describe it,_ Kismet’s voice rang above all else, _it is perhaps fitting to call it “the ability to see sounds”._

His hand darted up so fast he could not stop it and tore the blindfold away. Henry screamed when his vision was hit with brightness, for a moment a terrible cacophony of noises coming from everywhere and nowhere at once threatened to overwhelm him... then the sensation ended. He blinked and stared ahead, the volume was back to normal. He barely heard the drips anymore.

Henry sat there, rooted in place, for what felt like hours, attempting in vain to calm his frantic heartbeat. His forehead pearled with sweat like he had just run five rounds of the parkour in a go, despite him having barely moved. Was that it, rang in his head over and over, was that the threshold? If it was indeed the threshold, why had it gone away again then? Or had it all been in his head?

Henry raised his gaze and wiped his palms on his pants, then stared back at the blindfold. If it was all in my head, I won’t be able to recreate it, he adamantly thought and raised the cloth to cover his eye again. And if it WAS the threshold...

Henry squinted, was the dripping still there? He faintly made it out at the far side of the cave, yet the moment he focused, he found himself back in the state of strange balance, somewhere between conscious and absent.

He watched the bizarre images be painted before his inner eye by first only the drips, then he realized he could make it permanent by not focusing on the water alone. All his surroundings made noise, so why did he not use it all?

Henry stared in awe at the fantastic scapes that were painted before him in such excellent detail he nearly lost his balance in it, slipping into unconscious drifting. Until the sound palette suddenly shifted.

It frightened him so he managed to keep his balance only with utmost willpower, and instinctively focused his perception on what had changed. And there she was, Henry saw her contour painted in frightening detail. Kismet stood in the entrance that led down to the vicinity of her cave, as a still silhouette against the vibrant colors of his perception.

Then she took a step forward, and for the first time the exiled prince found himself hear her footsteps. Hear her landing as she leaped down from the little ledge the entrance led to. Every step she took only enriched his own vision, mixing with the sounds of his surroundings in perfect harmony.

 _Improving echolocation involves maximizing your sensory abilities,_ her voice rang in his head, _over achieving harmony with your physical environment, to finally combine the two by discovering you can use one to understand and evaluate the other._

Well, were he perfectly honest, Henry would have never thought she had meant it this literally.

When Kismet then took a flying leap at him he had long sensed her coming. He had also sensed she would not strike him even if he did not move, it was clearly a test. And yet he did move.

Henry barely controlled his limbs when they lifted his body off the ground and into a cowering position, at first he feared the movement would break the balance, but soon discovered as long as he focused, he did not have to sit still for it. He naturally dodged when Kismet then flew at him, yet when her claws scraped the edge of the pillar to prevent herself from falling back down Henry believed his eardrums would burst so piercing was the screech of claw on stone.

He cried and fell to his knees, pressing his hands to his ears. His balance shattered like glass, sharp edges digging into his ears and his skull, into what was left of his eyes, leaving him utterly blind again.

“So...”, Kismet’s voice finally reached his ears, and it sounded perfectly normal. “So, so, so, so...”

“What...”, Henry forced himself to speak, and tore the blindfold away simultaneously. He spotted her glaring up at him from below the pillar and blinked, “What... was that?”

Kismet remained silent for a few heartbeats. “What that was?”, she grinned crookedly, “The second threshold of echolocation, if I am not gravely mistaken.”

> _ Log 34/Day 99, before bedtime _

> _~~You will not BELIEVE WHAT JUST~~ _

> _Note to self: Do not speak to the void. Apart from that, I CAN NOT BELIEVE THIS REALLY JUST HAPPENED. I’m literally still in a state of shock. This is all so... Goodness, where do I even BEGIN?!_

> _Okay, I’m back, had to go run like two rounds of the parkour to calm myself enough to be able to write this log. Anyway, I did it. Yeah, second threshold SLAIN, and that after what, 99 days here? Honestly, part of me was expecting this to be a ten-ish years thing, so I guess... fast? I’m not exactly sure... BUT that hardly matters anymore. I mean I PASSED it, fast, slow... who even gives a shit?_

> _Man, I mean I’d try to explain how it’s like, but I honestly don’t think I can. And I mean, why would I need to? These logs are for me, and I KNOW how it’s like. So screw it. No, you know what, I know how to describe it. Seeing sounds. That’s exactly what it is. Like, unnervingly so. Almost like Kismet knew how it was like herself and found the perfect way to put it into words (which is somewhat impressive in itself, considering how indescribable it is)._

> _Anyway, after I passed it earlier she took me back to her cave and we sat down to talk about it a bit. She wanted to know what the exact trigger was (dripping water, by the way), what the experience was like overall, and all that stuff._

> _And you know what she said? “I told you, all you had to do was learn to endure the silence, and you would succeed”. Can you BELIEVE the NERVE? I pass the DAMN SECOND THRESHOLD OF ECHOLOCATION as the FIRST HUMAN EVER and all she has for me is an “I TOLD YOU SO”?! Not that it dimmed my mood much, at that point._

> _And then she sent me to BED. Yeah, to BED. To give her time to think about it. To give HER time to think about it. Well... all I know is I’m much too excited to sleep. Rummaged through my backpack for my mother’s notebook (she “confiscated” mine earlier... long story that I don’t want to reiterate right now) to write this log (somewhat fitting, actually, considering how historic it is. Maybe it does have a place here, with all mine and my mother’s inventions). But I might go and run the parkour again afterward. I really can’t sleep. I’d just try to get back into that “zone” again, and then zone out to focus on random sounds instead of sleeping. It’s suddenly become way more interesting to focus on sounds._

> _Hmm... has this newfound skill any application in eavesdropping, I wonder...? Gotta try that at some point. Anyway, gotta go run like 100 rounds of the parkour. If I don’t die from excitement first._

“What can you hear?”

Henry firmly squinted and immediately found himself slipping back into the piqued state of balance. Water rushed around his ankles, a little warmer than it normally was. He heard every wave break like it swept over his very core. But that was not all.

“A... volcano”, Henry mumbled and squinted harder as the unnervingly loud sound of his own voice permeated his ears and his focus slipped. His eye opened and he stared back at Kismet, in the dim orange glow from the lake. “I heard it”, he whispered and his eye began to shine, “it’s like the lava paints an image of its path in my head. Miles below us it rumbles, waiting to one day erupt.”

He made out Kismet’s faint smile. “Apart from the fact it’s called magma if it has not erupted yet, you are correct.”

“Oh come on”, Henry kicked the water and plopped down on the beach, feet dangling into the water. “Details...”

“Details indeed”, Kismet mumbled as she sat beside him.

“So”, he turned to her, resisting the temptation to slip back away and listen to more of the great lava... magma sounds. “What was that with not being able to enhance senses? I mean come on, what else would you even call this?”

Kismet silently laughed. “Nothing has enhanced, pup. You have merely discovered the true potential of your senses – as the first human ever, if I may add. But it has all been there before. You just block it out usually, or you would suffer permanent sensory overload.”

Henry sighed and shrugged. “That was sensory overload alright, back when you jumped at me in that cave. I thought my eardrums would burst.”

“While to anyone with functioning sensory filters the cave was as silent as ever.”

“So is that what it does? Gets rid of the filters?”

“Not rid”, Kismet shook her head, “you merely gain control over them. Or are they not active right now?”

Henry froze, then nodded. “So... what...?”

“What will happen now?”

Henry remained silent, yet Kismet spoke on, “I am not... sure.” She suddenly sounded very old. “I have... in all honesty, I have not even remotely expected this to happen any time soon. So I’ve not really prepared for...”, she hesitated, then looked at him, “are you in any way aware of what you have done?”

Henry frowned. “... passed the second threshold, yeah, you said that –”

“I MEAN”, Kismet cut him off, “you have been here for... what, give or take a hundred days?”

“Ninety nine”, Henry corrected her, “I’ve counted this time.”

Kismet smiled faintly. “Ninety... nine days, eh?” There was a long pause. “Do you know how long it took me, back then?”

When Henry only eagerly stared at her, she sighed. “More than four and a half years.”

His eye widened and a first wave of incredible pride swept over him, before it was purged by another emotion.

He stared at the scarred and old, yet so tenacious and wise rat – and smiled. “Well... YOU didn’t have a teacher, did you? A really good teacher too, one who... well, after some starting difficulties, knew exactly how to push and guide you. You had to discover it all on your own... and that as the first individual ever. Four and a half years are pretty good, taking all that into account.”

Kismet stared at him and he thought her eye was widened, yet he could not properly tell without the vision aid. They sat in silence for a long time, Henry found himself incredibly tempted to slip back into the focused state with every silent second, only when Kismet then spoke, he snapped back into reality –

“I am... a researcher, you know that.”

Henry frowned in confusion, “What does that have to do with –”

“You know what I’ve dedicated my life to?” She stared at him pensively, “All those years, all the writing, all the books, the endless hours of...”, she sighed and turned to look out onto the lake, “it is the very thing I refused to involve in our training for a whole month. That which you have become so good at so quickly it almost disturbs me. It is the art of combat.”

Henry stopped with his hand raised, and slowly lowered it again. “Combat?”, he cautiously asked, “What is there to study about...?”

“Oh”, she cut him off with a laugh, “so much, Henry. There is oh... so much. There is hardly an art more worth breaking into its essentials, to look how the parts fit best together than the art of combat... apart from people maybe. But I can hardly study those when I live as a hermit.”

Henry stared at her with unconcealed fascination. “Will you teach me?”

To his surprise, Kismet laughed. “What do you think I have been doing, these last months? I have never...”, she hesitated, “never shared any of it, you know? Not even thought I would ever get to share any of it. And then... YOU stand before me. You, who are so...”, she broke off, clearly struggling for words. “I have once announced before the most obnoxious loudmouth to ever exist I would one day discover a way to match him in skill, and not through the luck of being born with it all, but through training. Through hard, honest work.”

Henry nearly broke into laughter. “Ripred? Oh I also – wait...”, he gazed at her, “isn’t Ripred a rager?”

“Precisely.”

“You...”, Henry’s eye widened, “THAT’S your goal? To become as good as a rager? Is that even possible?”

“Is it possible for a human to pass the second threshold of echolocation?”, was all she reciprocated and Henry swallowed, sensing an excited tingle in his chest. “So you...”

“I had once... made it my goal to prove him wrong in his claim ragers deserve the title of most capable warriors.” She nearly scoffed, “What even is a rager, other than an undeservedly privileged nobody?”

Henry joined in her following laugh, making a mental note of the words to one day say to Ripred’s face.

“And that I will one day do. Yet there is also...”, Kismet’s tone shifted and something about it had Henry shiver. “I will perhaps not be alone.”

“What are you –?”

“Oh pup, you know what I mean”, she scoffed. “I told you before. I have never met anyone with such potential to achieve harmony between the mental and the physical as you. I had perfected my own mental abilities long before I first attempted to combine them with something physical. And when I then did, it took me four and a half years to achieve what you mastered in... just over three months. Teacher or no teacher.”

Henry stared at her and despite the imminent surge of pride, this time it felt... like a different type of pride. A type that for some reason had tears well up in his eyes.

“You know, you are truly fascinating, Henry. At first, you seemed like such a shallow show-off I nearly made the mistake to write you off as irredeemable.” Kismet laughed, “But then... then you find your anchor point, and you relentlessly cling to it until you have pulled yourself up to where you mean to end up, and... of course, you CAN be a show-off and an insufferable loudmouth... but this incessant trait to not only brag but also deliver, is... a remarkable and unique quality, indeed. You”, she hesitated, “perhaps you are not Icarus after all... perhaps you are Achilles, for whatever that entails.”

Henry’s smile grew, and as much as he wanted to ask who Achilles was and what it entailed to be him, there would be plenty of time for that later. “You think so?”

“I don’t have to think”, she resolutely shrugged. “I can observe.”

They both laughed, and after what seemed like an eternity, she finally spoke again – “So what will it then be, pup?”

When Henry stared at her in confusion, she grumbled, “You came here to pass the threshold, so do you call yourself a satisfied customer and, whenever your flier returns, call our contract fulfilled – or do you stay?”

Henry blinked at her and hesitated for a few heartbeats. His mind flashed back to his own determination to learn from her, to overcome his own weakness, to be... useful in battle again. His jaw clenched and he quickly purged the nagging thoughts of Thanatos and how long he had been gone.

Then he glanced back at Kismet and his hand automatically closed around the hilt of Mys at his hip. If I leave now, this will be it, he thought, and the thought was strangely unpleasant. If I leave... I may have passed the threshold, but the hell do I even know about applying any of it in real combat?

The thought had his own decision seem crystal clear.


	11. Too Late

**[Attention - everything past this point is UNEDITED. I can not be held responsible for logical inconsistencies, plot holes, bad style, or anything, really. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.**

**In fact, if you do read on now, the following conflict/plot will make little to no sense as I've significantly changed a lot of it, so please wait for the edit to be done. I will gladly notify you when that will be the case, if you comment and ask me!]**

* * *

Utter darkness engulfed him when Henry shot up on his sheet. He heaved frantically, the sounds of his own breaths permeated his ears and shrill statics sparked before his eye, painting the contours of Kismet’s cave in violently clashing colors.

Henry swallowed and squinted, then wiped the pearls of sweat from his forehead and took a conscious breath. In and out. _It varies with your state of mind,_ Kismet’s voice rang in his head, _the world will look different when you’re scared than when you’re angry or contented._ In and out.

When Henry had taken his third breath the static had calmed. The cave looked as ever, apart from the fact that he saw it not with his eye. For a moment he focused, and, as expected, it was empty.

Henry’s head darted at the wall beside him. He saw nothing, of course, but he knew how many tally-marks it were anyway. A hundred and thirty-two. His hand automatically reached for the piece of chalk and ran his fingers over the wall until he found the spot. One hundred and thirty-three.

Minutes passed as Henry sat still, cowered at the wall, staring out into the dark. He was not scared. Not anymore. Any intruder he’d instantly make out by the sound of their footsteps, and besides, there weren’t any intruders here. In fact, nobody ever came here. There were only two entrances as well. The way from the direction of the citadel, through the Path of Styx, and the passage that led through the cave with the steaming creek and eventually to the lake.

Despite the darkness, his head turned to the wall. His echolocation painted it as a colorless contour, yet he fixated the spot where he knew the sixty-fifth mark was. He had made it especially bold too, so that it stood out. Because it had been a... special day.

Henry nearly scoffed and pulled his legs to his chest. He stared into the pitch darkness, wishing to scratch that particular mark from the wall altogether.

He had been... running, he thought, for the first time attempting to recall his nightmare. Running and screaming, yet he’d had no control over his vocal cords. Nothing had escaped his throat, and the all-consuming silence had been scarier than any darkness could ever be. He could not see. Henry squinted. Not see, not hear, not –

How long had it been, since he’d had the last nightmare? The exiled prince took a deep breath and forced himself to remember – the cold amber stare from beyond the glass.

His lips pressed together and he shook his head angrily. Why was he having nightmares again? They had not plagued him at all here, and this one had been... Henry squinted, he had been running, but running where? He had been searching for... something or... someone, he thought and shuddered. Calling, crying, flailing in darkness, yet nobody had come. Who had he expected to come?

 _We will fly together._ His body stiffened as the words shot through his head. _We will –_ Henry squinted. He attempted to be taken back to it, back to... yet to his own horror the sensation was so faint he barely recalled it. To fly, he clenched his jaw, to... fly...

He is not coming back.

Even thinking the words drove tears into Henry’s eye. Angrily, he wiped them away. He is not... sixty-eight days. The number popped into Henry’s head instantly, one more than sixty-seven, which had been yesterday’s number. But yesterday Kismet had chased him through a challenge run three times in a row and he had been dead on his feet. His sleep had been black and dreamless. So had most nights, in recent times.

Or... no, the challenge run had been two days ago. If he was awake, it was the next day, so yesterday she had taken it easy on him for once. Some focus-oriented exercises, some aiming with the slingshot and with Mys, a bit of sword handling, and of course the daily control exercises. Kismet said he was fairly good at controlling this, how she claimed “sixth sense”, already, yet Henry himself felt it was very much out of control most of the time. Like earlier.

Kismet always said he was pushing himself too hard – but if he wanted to get better he had to push himself. He would not get better if he did not push himself.

Of course, he had made significant progress since he had passed the threshold initially. He barely ever suffered sensory overload anymore, and learning to differentiate between background- and foreground-sounds had made what well-enough resembled a new sense significantly more applicable. Kismet claimed he would soon be able to use it in battle actively, to judge what his vision could not anymore – distance, depth, even speed, and angles of attacks.

Henry clenched his teeth and determinately stood up. Maybe he should go practice on his own if Kismet was not yet up. The more he practiced, the sooner he would master it, and then he could finally –

An arrow pierced his heart when he made himself aware of the sobering truth – he had not really anywhere to go. Not anymore. Not on his own.

Maybe he should not rush himself so, in that case. Henry slowly sank back down to cower on his sheet again. Maybe he should take his time, as Kismet always urged. If he took his time, he would be occupied for longer. He would not have to ask himself what he would do afterward for longer.

Henry angrily wiped at his face. Maybe he should ditch the stupid tally. He did not want to count the days anyway. Let it all blur into a continuous loop, he thought and nearly smiled. Let it all blur, and let me forget.

Henry sighed once more, then pulled himself to his feet. It was of no use, sitting around here. Suddenly he felt as though he could not sit still for a moment longer. Maybe he should go run the parkour again. He hadn’t done so in ages, not without some extra task or challenge attached to it, at least. Maybe it was time.

Silently, Henry slipped out of the cave and made his way down the cliff. This had become so much easier ever since he could actually perceive where he was going. It’ll be a calm day again, Henry forced himself to smile as he jumped the last couple feet. Nothing to bother with, nothing to –

“HENRY!”

He winced as Kismet’s voice sounded to his right and he instantly clenched the handle of Mys at the back of his hip, assuming attack position. She had never sounded like this before, not a single time, so that must mean –

“Henry you must come!”

His head jerked to where her shrill voice painted her contours. Kismet nearly leaped at him, from the cave with the creek. “Henry, it is your flier!”

The rat tooth dagger he had drawn preemptively slipped from Henry’s hand. His... “What?”

“Your flier, he was attacked”, she heaved, then she had reached him and began pushing him forward, not without scooping up Mys first, though. “He says he has run into rats in the vicinity – RATS, HERE! It is unbelievable!”, she scoffed yet Henry had a hard time even paying attention. “They had cut off his way back, so he claims, that’s why he has been gone for so long. And now that he had finally found a moment to slip through, he was spotted and injured.”

“He...” Henry stopped so abruptly Kismet nearly ran into him. He barely perceived any of his surroundings so overwhelmingly pungent was the pounding of his own heart in his ears. “Cut... off?”

“Yes, apparently there exists a way from here to... OH, he can tell you this better than I”, Kismet relentlessly shoved him forward, “I’ve not asked him for details. But you must help me carry him, or I fear he will –”

In the same heartbeat, Henry perceived a figure darting out of the tunnel ahead and towards them. His wings flapped once, twice, and the sound painted such a clear image of his surroundings the exiled prince thought he had seldom ever heard any natural sound working this well.

“Hey, I told you we’d come to fetch you!”, Kismet snarled at Thanatos who circled over their heads once and finally landed in front of them. “You should not fly in that –”

“It is but a scratch, don’t bother.”

The voice rang hoarsely in Henry’s ears like a gong and for some reason, his heartbeat quickened even more when he stepped forward. He sounded so... so... “Hadn’t had anyone to talk to in a while, eh?” The exiled prince failed to suppress a grin.

“Henry”, the flier’s head darted up. “No... not really.” He sighed. “I’ve got much to tell you, I...”

“I’ve got much to tell you too!” Henry was nearly mowed down by the enormous wave of relief that hit as soon as his brain had properly processed the shape in front of him. The voice. “Oh, oh so much!”

“Wait... wait... hold on...” Henry’s eye was round and large as he stared at Thanatos, in the flickering light of the torch he had put up with some of the last fuel he had. “There is a... cave system... BELOW the waterway? And you say it’s... what, COLD?”

“Not just cold”, Thanatos shook his head, eyeing the wing Henry had had to stitch up. It hadn’t been a large rip, only a couple inches long, and he thought Kismet ought to see the kinds of injuries the flier had flown with before. Maybe then she would not freak out so much over what both Henry and Thanatos dismissed as a nuisance. Even the cut on his leg looked more vicious, though the exiled prince thought that probably was because it had bled.

“Frozen”, Kismet beat the flier to responding and he nodded. “I have never seen so much ice before. It occasionally occurs in great depths, I have encountered a partially frozen water body in a tunnel leading downward from the Dead Land a long time ago, yet...”, he visibly shuddered. “This is a whole system made up of icy tunnels.”

Kismet and Henry exchanged excited gazes. The tale the flier had just shared exceeded their wildest expectations – “A way... to the Dead Land, below the waterway?” Kismet’s voice was suddenly loaded with worry. “As incredible as this is, it is not ideal.”, she shook her head. “Who knows where else it leads, if it leads here?”

Yet Henry barely listened. His mind reeled, attempting to digest all the new insights and possibilities the flier’s story brought with itself. “So you... you found that ice system and... were trapped in the Dead Land because the rats had sealed your way back?”

Thanatos glanced at the floor. “I presume they have found the entrance on the other side.”

“That would mean there is most likely more, here somewhere”, Kismet sighed, “we must be careful. I do wonder why no one has ever found it before if it is truly so obvious, though. Not even I have ever heard of such a thing as a pit made up from an icy cave system beneath the waterway.”

“It has probably been sealed before”, Thanatos pondered, “maybe a recent volcanic eruption opened an entrance? The opening seemed fresh, at least on this side.”

Henry and Kismet exchanged another look. “That would be the only explanation”, the rat looked back and forth between Henry and Thanatos. “And they caught up to you on your way back?”

The flier nodded. “I only lost them near the orange-glowing lake.”

The three sat in silence for a while and Henry couldn’t help but stare at Thanatos, sensing an excited tingle run down his spine. He was here, and... His gaze darted to the wall, clustered over and over with tally-marks, and his heartbeat quickened. Was this it? The future he had not wanted to imagine because he had believed it would never happen anymore? Was this his... he looked back at Kismet and suddenly felt a sting of sadness... his incentive to leave?

“Oh, if nobody else will say it, I will”, the rat at last snarled, “you wish to go and explore that ice pit, and I am the last who will stop you.”

Henry pressed his lips together, yet before he could speak, Thanatos raised his voice again – “There is actually... something else, something I found in there, on my way back. It is deeply wedged into the ice yet it seems not like a stone – none I have ever seen, at least.”

Henry’s brow furrowed. “If it is not stone, what is it then?”

“I am... not certain. It has a metallic shine about it, yet it is too large for a vein – and have you ever seen any metal that is black?”

“Black?”, Henry echoed and his frown deepened. He barely stopped himself from calling he needed to take a look as soon as possible.

His gaze automatically darted to Kismet who crookedly grinned. “What are you still sitting around here for, then?” She shook her head, “You have learned everything and more than what you came here to learn”, she turned to Thanatos, “he has passed the second threshold of echolocation around a month ago. You will most definitely not be running a liability by keeping him around anymore.”

The flier’s eyes widened. “Is... that so? You are...”, he hesitated, “actually... done, then? Already?”

“What do you mean, already?”, Henry frowned, “It took long enough.”

“I was expecting this to take several years if I am being honest”, the flier mumbled but Henry blissfully ignored it. He had... learned everything he had come here to learn, and more. His gaze locked onto his sword that leaned in a corner, and he barely restrained himself from leaping in joy. This was it, he thought and grinned widely, rising to his feet. This was the day he would finally get out of here again and back into the real world, back to adventures, and perils, and... his gaze darted at Thanatos – back to how it had been before?

The thought resonated in his mind with every movement, and he had not felt so enlivened in forever. It barely took him ten minutes to gather up his scattered belongings and when he then shouldered his backpack and turned, Kismet stood before him. “Are you not forgetting something?”

Henry stared at her for a few heartbeats, vigorously combatting the tears that suddenly rose in his eye. The cave around him flickered with the light from the torch and his mind enriched the image with vibrant detail. Nearly four months he had spent here, laughing, screaming, crying, fighting, struggling... and now?

Before Kismet could react he had already wrapped his arms around her tightly. “Yeah, I am.”

“THAT is NOT what I meant –!”, Kismet yelped, though Henry registered a short moment of hesitation before she grabbed him by the collar. Her eye was but a narrow slit yet the exiled prince sensed her own reluctance to say goodbye was as great as his, if not greater.

“This is what I meant”, she snarled and put him back on his feet, then held out a tattered leather book. “I told you you’d get it back once our contract would be fulfilled. And well, here we are.”

“My notebook!”, Henry cried and snatched it from her claw with a wide grin. “FINALLY!”

“You earned it”, was all she replied and the exiled prince gave her the most sincere smile he could muster. “Really?”

“Oh yes”, she sighed, then narrowed her eye again. “But if you ever so much as ATTEMPT TO HUG me again I will claw your other eye out as well, are we clear?”

Henry only broke into laughter. “Crystal clear!”

She followed him to the entrance where Thanatos waited, his gaze darted back and forth between the two. “You have actually come to tolerate each other, haven’t you?”

Henry grinned and shouldered his backpack before mounting up. His spine tingled with the excitement the prospect of flying again brought with itself. “Oh yeah. She’s awesome”, he shot Kismet another grin. “Mind if I come back someday? Wouldn’t want you to forget me, right?”

“Oh, do not worry, you are not one who is forgotten easily”, she mumbled and squinted at them from where she cowered at the wall. “You will... beware, won’t you? Do not make the mistake to believe yourself invincible now, most importantly. Strong you are, but you’ve still a long way to go”, she suddenly lifted herself from the wall, “And you have packed enough supplies? There will hardly be anything to eat in a place coated in ice... and speaking of coats, do you even have enough warm clothing to –”

“KISMET!”, Henry cut her off and theatrically rolled his eye. “I’ll be FINE. You said it yourself, I’m a survivor – right? A survivor who must leave, lest you forget battle is an art and make it messy!”

Kismet let out a hoarse laugh. In the light from the torch Henry now raised above his head, her fur looked almost white. “It is not really your survival ability that worries me”, she grew serious all of a sudden, “you must promise me you will take care. You both.”

Henry opened his mouth to reply, yet all words escaped him. Had she not once adamantly refused to even listen to him, to even consider teaching him? And now... The exiled prince attempted to wipe at his face discretely, yet she could have hardly overheard the loud sniff he could not suppress.

“We will take care”, Thanatos at last replied for him, and Henry nodded. “You too though.”

He screamed a last – “We’ll come and visit soon!” after Thanatos had spread his wings. “Run like the river, Kismet!”

The flier already circled around the cliff, ready to dive into the tunnel towards the cave with the creek and the exit beyond, when she at last called – “Fly you high, Achilles! But not too high, you do not want to end like Icarus, do you?”

“Who is...” – “Don’t ask me, I have no clue”, Henry cut Thanatos’ question off. “She’s been calling me all these strange names, throughout my stay here. I think they are people from some old Overland legends she’s into.”

“And you have never asked?”

“Look, I was busy, okay?” Henry sighed. Suddenly he regretted not having asked. The story she had told him about the adventurer Odysseus had been fantastic, maybe each of these characters had a story such as his, or even better?

It was almost strange, to fly again. Henry soon extinguished his torch and closed his eye, allowing the even sound of Thanatos’ wings to paint his surroundings before his inner eye. A rush of something incredibly satisfying overwhelmed him as he made himself aware of the familiar wind in his hair, on his face. He should have never gone so long without flying.

Henry’s mouth curved into a smile. For a moment the memory of his nightmare last night flashed before his inner eye yet he quickly dismissed it. Now was not the time to worry. Now was the time to look forward and anticipate the endless possibilities that lied ahead once more.

Henry suddenly felt like the shackle of weakness that had tied him down, suffocated, and rendered him helpless, over what had felt like an eternity, had finally broken. He was... free.

“So, what do you want to do now?”, he finally broke the silence. “After we fetch that rock – or whatever it is?” It can be like before, Henry made himself aware and his mind flashed back to the time after he had rescued Thanatos from the spinners. It can finally be like –

“I am not sure...”, the flier darted into the cave with the lake and the waterfall. Henry watched his large, black reflection in the glistening water before he zoomed in on a tunnel high up in the air.

“Dead Land?”, Henry suggested, turning his head to catch a last glimpse at the so familiar orange glow. He could barely believe he would most likely not see it again in a long time now. “I bet the plague is long defeated”, he finally tore his eye away from the last bit of glow and faced forward. “They’ll need mercenaries again now, right?”

Thanatos only hummed. “I... I am not sure this is all so easy. With how many lives it cost and how widely spread it was, do you really think the plague will be –”

“Or MAYBE”, Henry’s eye widened as an image flashed before his inner eye. Kismet’s shape was replaced by that of another light grey rat – “Do you remember that arena? The one we killed Sizzleblood in?”

Thanatos hummed confusedly. “Of course. What about it?”

Henry’s mouth curved into a grin. “Do you think the guy... Splintleg, was it? Do you think he takes applications?”

“Appli- Henry!”, Thanatos called and took a sharp turn, “You can not be serious!”

“Why not?”, he frowned and scooted around, “I can fight again now. And I want to fight! I’ve not fought an actual opponent in... AGES! And how incredible would that be, a human champion in a gnawer arena! Now that is a first I would like to be known for!”

“You... ARE serious”, Thanatos replied and his voice was loaded with bitterness. “Don’t you think that – apart from how that is the single most irresponsible idea you had in... perhaps ever, actually – you should take it a little easy for now? You JUST learned this... whatever it is, higher echolocation or whatnot. Maybe it is best to wait until you’ve got a better grip on it before you rush into battle.”

Henry’s excitedly opened mouth snapped shut. His glee abated and made way for frustration. Who even gives him the right, he frowned and wrapped his arms around himself, to snuff out all my anticipation like this?

“Do you have to be so negative all the time?”, he hissed and suddenly realized he was shivering. “I mean, the point was to learn how to fight again, and I did learn – MAN is it COLD HERE!”

“Well, it is the... how did you say? Ice Pit... for a reason”, the flier resolutely replied and Henry wrapped his arms even tighter around himself. He curiously watched the small clouds his breaths created for a few minutes, then he finally fetched his coat. Yet even with the coat, the deeper they descended down the wide tunnel they followed, the colder it became.

Ten minutes of steep descent must have passed and Henry had just fetched his torch to light it again, despite how little fuel he had. He thought at least the flame could maybe warm him up. But just as the torch ignited, Thanatos landed. “You must squeeze through on foot, I can not fly through here.” He pointed ahead into a narrow crack in the wall.

Henry was more taken up by the shimmer the stone seemed to emit when his torchlight hit it and carefully extended a hand, only to jerk back instantly. “AH! Man, that’s... icy! Ha!”

Thanatos only rolled his eyes before proceeding through the crack. Henry stared at the wall for a moment longer. The film of ice was so thin he barely saw it, and yet... Frozen water, Henry smiled and followed Thanatos through the crack at last. He had only ever heard of ice before, never actually seen any, and when he emerged on the other side of what appeared to be a fresh rift in the rock caused by a volcanic eruption nearby, his jaw dropped.

“Wow... this is gorgeous!”

“It is... quite the sight to see”, Thanatos appeared beside him, “yet we should not linger. I told you there were rats here.”

Henry barely tore his gaze away from the magnificent, white glittering of the stone around him and nearly slipped on his way over to Thanatos. The echo of his cry vibrated the entire cave, it was like the ice enhanced the effect and Henry cursed.

“Be quiet”, Thanatos hissed and glanced around.

“Yeah, sorry”, Henry grumbled and mounted up again. The flier’s claws scraped the strange substance as he lifted off. “It’s just so...” So cold, and smooth, and glistening, the exiled prince smiled. Like... Angrily, Henry chased the uprising image. It could not have been ice, he reprehended himself. Back when I had that dream I barely knew ice existed here.

Still, now that he had remembered it, the image would not leave him alone anymore, and it cost Henry all his willpower to keep the stupid emotions that welled up in him again now at bay.

This was just what he had wanted to avoid, his lips pressed together. He had wanted to look forward to an adventure, like back then, back when things had been easier. Less... defined, less constraining. To forget all that had happened after... _He remains with me for convenience – or whatever reason, really. I don’t even want to know._

Why do you not even want to know? Henry’s jaw clenched. Why do you not want to hear that I care about you? How is this so hard to believe for you?

Henry opened his mouth to ask how far it still was. Suddenly, all he wanted was out of here. Out of here and back to the Dead Land, back into some sort of routine... a routine they did not really have.

In fact, his mouth adamantly shut again, Thanatos did not even want to go back to doing what they had done before. _Don’t you think you should take it a little easy for now?_ Easy. Henry nearly scoffed. He had taken it easy the last four months. He had done exactly what Thanatos had wanted of him, he had found a damned solution for his damned problem, so what was the problem now?

_Maybe you are... taking it a little too far this time, do you not think?_

Henry’s eye jolted open.

_It is not for your own benefit either, to give them all a reason to hate you. What do you gain out of the trouble all this is worth?_

Right. It had always gone like this. For each and every idea he had ever presented to Ares the flier had either cautiously protested or silently obliged, always with that particular... disapproving look in his eyes, though. Like he had not cared for what Henry wanted. For what he needed. All he has ever done was hold me back, the exiled prince frowned and picked at the hilt of his torch. All he has...

If Thanatos truly knew what he needed, why was he protesting now? And if he did not... he was supposed to know what Henry needed, was he not? Was it not what bonds did? Together, the exiled prince clenched his fist, together in life and death and war and strife. Together. Then why was he –

“Here it is”, Thanatos suddenly shot out into a vast cave and Henry immediately noticed there was something wedged into the floor, almost directly in the center. When the flier landed and he cautiously stepped closer, Henry’s jaw dropped. He nearly slipped as the floor declined by a couple inches around the object, almost like an ancient crater of something that had at some point impacted with incredible speed.

He cautiously slid down and knelt beside the object, when he then extended a hand to touch it he jerked back from how cold it was. It was maybe eight or nine inches in diameter and of a shiny, black substance, unlike anything he had ever seen. “Woah”, he quietly mumbled and sensed fresh excitement rise in his chest. “What the hell even is it?”

“I have no idea”, Thanatos replied from behind him and Henry frowned. “Maybe we can take it to Teslas, he might know what it is. He’s great with rocks, right?” Henry stood up and drew his sword. The tip rammed into the ice beneath the object and it took the exiled prince some five minutes to entirely excavate it. By the end of the procedure, he barely felt his hands anymore and cursed for not having proper gloves. Then again, how could he have ever predicted to end up in a place best described as Ice Pit?

“Wow, it’s so... light”, Henry, with the help of a large piece of fabric, heaved it out at last and tossed it up a couple times, surprised for it weighed maybe half of what he had expected. “I REALLY want to know what this is.”

“Yes”, Thanatos watched as the exiled prince attempted to make room for it in his already stuffed backpack. “Though we should...”, but Henry interrupted him, “Let’s get the hell out of here now, okay? I’m FREEZING! We can get out the way you got out, right?”, he shivered as he pressed his stash of fabrics into the backpack with force, then struggled to shut it. “Where did you come from?”

Thanatos twitched. “I... we must take a different path, it’s a detour of maybe ten minutes.”

Henry nodded, shouldered his backpack, and stepped towards the torch he had put up to have light for his work. And of course, there was also the beautiful sparkling effect it produced on the icy walls. Yet before he could reach it, he suddenly froze. “Wait... what?” He frowned and stared at the flier, “Didn’t you say earlier you came across this thing on your way back from the Dead Land? How is it a detour then?”

The flier’s head jerked around in his direction. “I... did I... say that?” His eyes narrowed, “I apologize, I must have mixed that up, I mean it was on my way back, but I had been chased in here by the rats, only to then discover this was a dead end.”

Henry’s frown deepened and he clutched the straps of his backpack as hard as he could, with his stiff fingers. “You...”, his gaze darted over to the only entrance. It was barely wide enough for Thanatos to traverse flying. “You got out of here through... THAT? Were those rats stupider than the ones we usually see or why did they not just block the entrance?”

The ice began to crack beneath Thanatos’ claws, so hard he dug them into the ground. “They... they were...”

“You didn’t discover this on your way back at all, did you?” Henry’s jaw clenched so hard he had trouble speaking. Between his fingers, he violently twisted the large piece of fabric he had used to heave the material out of the hole, it had not fit into his backpack. “Did you... just lie to me?”

Tell me I am wrong, he pleaded silently. Just tell me I’m an idiot, and point at the obvious logical inconsistency in all this I’m missing like you always do. Just, please...

Yet all that followed his accusation was a deathly silence.

“You...” His hands trembled, digging deeply into the piece of fabric. What had even gotten into Thanatos? He had never been dishonest before. Not a single time he had... But if he was silent, it meant it was not a misunderstanding. It was...

“Why did you... LIE to me? About such a nuisance, too”, Henry forced the icy air in and out of his lungs, “This is not like you, I... We are bonds, are we not? Bonds are not supposed to lie to each other.” He shakily took a step forward, “How could you have...?” Utter confusion clustered his mind, rendered him unable to think straight. To come up with an explanation, any sort of... Lies. Lies... suddenly a familiar pain jolted through him, a pain like he had only experienced once. “You... betrayed me.”

“Oh... I am certainly not the traitor here.”

“What...?”, Henry squeezed out, instinctively reeling a step back. “What... are you talking about? I never betrayed you!” He desperately attempted to swallow the lump in his throat. Don’t do this, he internally pleaded, don’t do this, not now. Not now when everything was going so well. Not now when – “C... can we just get out of here please? I’m cold”, he wrapped his arms around himself, “I just want to –”

“YOU want to...” The tons of frozen water that surrounded them were nothing against the sudden ice in Thanatos’ voice. “Oh, YOU certainly want to. YOU speak of being bonds, like you have any right to”, he broke off and shuddered, finally shook his head. “Alright. Let us talk about this then. How could I have ever allowed myself to...”

“Talk about... What are you... talking about?!” Henry cried and agitatedly twisted the fabric, attempting to clear his buzzing head. What was happening... why was this argument happening... what had... happened...?

_If I express it, it will not change the fact that he does not care for me. He remains with me for convenience – or whatever reason, really. I don’t even want to know._

A wave of panic overwhelmed him and pressed the last bit of air from his lungs. “Y... you...”

“You know what, fine”, the flier suddenly sat up and stared at him with narrowed eyes. Between them gaped the pit that had previously held the strange black object. “You are correct. I did not find this thing on my way back. I was not on my way back when I was attacked, either. I probably should have thought this through better, but it hardly matters now.”

“Should have thought...”, Henry stared at him, sensing the fabric between his fingers stiffen from cold. “Do you mean to say you stayed away deliberately?” His mind flashed with an image of his tally wall. Sixty-eight days. Sixty-eight days of... “But why –”

“Because your presence is nothing short of SUFFOCATING, did you really not ever catch that?!”

“Suffo... what...?” Henry nearly dropped the piece of fabric. His eye widened and he resisted the impulse to take another step back. “Wait, so all this time...”

 _I just feel like... some time away from him would do me good sometimes, you know?_ The voice speaking in his head was that of Ares, but it sounded strangely distorted, strangely like... “You stayed away because you wanted to be... away from me?”

“You...” The flier before him narrowed his eyes to sharp slits. “It is always about you, is it not? You, and you, and you –” His wings jolted open and Henry registered his fur stood on end. “You take, and take, and take, and I give, because it is all I can do! Because I have pledged myself to you, because I have attached myself to you!” His voice echoed from the walls, every word like another stab to the heart.

“Out of all who could have fallen that day, out of all who I could have saved... what have I ever done for the universe to hate me so much it sent me YOU?!”

All Henry could do was stare. He barely followed the torrent of words streaming from his mouth, barely registered any of it. Something was not right here, he numbly clutched the fabric, something must have gone wrong somewhere. This was not supposed to be happening. This was not...

“Well”, he barely recognized his own voice, so toneless it sounded, “maybe you should have stayed with Hamnet then. Too bad he is dead.”

The flier’s ears twitched, “You... how do you... did you eavesdrop?” Henry only pressed his lips together and Thanatos scoffed. “Oh well, it’s not like it matters much. I see now that he was right to warn me. I attempted to play it down then, tell myself it is worth it if only I have something... someone to live for, but then I found myself with all this time away from you, and... you were not the only one who learned something in that time. Do you want to know what it was I learned?”

He waited not for a reply. “I learned that it really is not worth it. It is not a life, it has never been, not in seven years. I thought I had reached the peak of my misery alone, yet apparently, I had not.”

“What... are you talking about?” Henry managed a step forward. Questions clogged his head furiously. _He does not care for me._ “What am I... What have I ever done wrong?”, he finally cried, “I don’t understand, how can you say that I don’t...?”

“What have you ever...?” The flier’s eyes widened in genuine surprise. “You really STILL don’t get that...? Even with everything I’ve... well”, his talons dug into the ice beneath, in his periphery Henry registered the quiet cracking. “Let’s just say it makes sense now. I’ve always wondered... I meant to ask, but I guess now I know why your former bond let you fall... I only wish I would have had the strength to do it too.”

Henry stood frozen solid. Suddenly it was like the ice around him breathed, he heard its strained heaving closing in on him, growing, seeking to enclose him.

“You are a PARASITE, Henry – a parasite that has attached itself to me, to drain the last bit of life I had left, and will not let go! Will not allow me to let it go! Why will you not LET ME GO?!”

The fabric between his fingers ripped apart. The sound permeated Henry’s ears ten times as loud as it was supposed to be. “W... what?”, he pressed out of his clogged throat, desperately blinking away the rising tears. “Can you tell me what I did... wrong?” All attempts to not sound desperate were forgotten. A strange cacophony of sounds he normally did not even register threatened to overwhelm him. The creaking of ice. The crackling of his torch. The frantic beats of his own heart. “Please... help me...!”

Yet the flier... his flier... undauntedly spoke on, disregarding his plea like he had not even heard it – “If only I could have listened to Hamnet”, he hissed, “if only I would have had the strength to see... WHAT you were from the get-go. Then again, I saw it, even before all this. Before you shackled us to each other. Before it was... too late.”

“Too... late?”

“Too late for you, certainly!”

Both flier and boy jumped when a third voice suddenly snarled behind them and it took Henry a full five seconds to register he was staring at one of at least a dozen rats. They had streamed in through the sole entrance and of course, blocked it spitefully.

His gaze darted to Thanatos. Neither he nor the flier had –

“Oh would you look at that, the rat who had spoken before continued, “it is the same flier who slipped through our claws last time. Longclaw will be delighted to see you! He says it’s been a while!”

Somewhere at the back of his mind, Henry knew he should devise a plan to escape. Should draw his sword, should slice all their throats as expertly as Kismet had taught him. Yet he was unable to move a single muscle.

Even when two rats came up behind him to grab his arms and push him towards the exit he remained still as stone. Still as ice. He stared ahead dazedly, attempting to combat the sounds flooding in on him from all directions. Why did I ever even push myself to pass this wretched threshold, he thought and squinted in an attempt to block it all out. Oh, how much easier had that been before.

Through what else his ears were ringing with Henry barely registered it when the tone of the rats around him suddenly shifted. He blinked and noticed they had already exited the cave, yet something upset their captors. Something like...

“You all hear that, right?”

“Hey, I thought the water was supposed to go out, not in!”

“That is what he said when –”

A swelling, swiftly approaching rushing sound interrupted the rat and before Henry could properly register what it was, he saw the first outskirt of glow, then... The rat beside him cried as Thanatos wrung one of his wings out of his grasp. The last thing the exiled prince registered was the visceral panic in his eyes before the swell of icy water hit.

Henry’s senses failed him as he was engulfed, his vision went black and he feared to drown in the agonizing swell of noises more than the water. It consumed and swallowed him, dragged him along like a weightless paper boat. Henry curled into a ball and squeezed his eye shut, then cried and swallowed water as he violently smacked into something.

Lights sparked before his eye and he barely twisted out of reach of the rat’s claws. They were all here, he faintly registered, the rats, Henry, and... the exiled prince meekly extended an arm to navigate and the stream propelled him forward until he collided with Thanatos. The flier’s wings were firmly shut and Henry wrapped his arms around his neck as tightly as he could.

He knew not whether Thanatos even sensed him, all he knew was that he would not let go. Not like... Henry gasped for air when their heads at last breached the surface together. He violently retched, attempting to regurgitate all the water he had swallowed, yet his grip on the flier’s neck remained firm. His cheek pressed into wet fur.

The exiled prince would not have been able to tell for how long the raging flood dragged them along, it could have been minutes or hours. All he registered was that the enormous pressure something had released down in the Ice Pit consistently pushed them upward and the tunnel split multiple times, narrowing more and more until it barely exceeded Thanatos’ own wingspan.

He had his eye shut for most of the time, fiercely combatting the deafening cacophony around him. His arms were locked around Thanatos’ neck and he sensed the flier’s trembling alongside his own.

His own heartbeat pounded frantically in his ears. Henry squeezed his eye shut even tighter and made out Thanatos’ heartbeat next to his own. Next to his...

A pained scream escaped Henry’s throat as a piece of debris suddenly struck the back of his head and he nearly released Thanatos’ neck. Only in the last moment, he prevented the wet fur from slipping out of his grasp.

He was still taken up with chasing the violent sparks that clustered his vision to properly register it when the flier suddenly sounded a hoarse cry. He blinked and tightened his grip even further. What was Thanatos...

Henry’s back nearly hit the wall that bordered the river and he only now registered how tight the tunnel had become. It was barely three or four feet wide anymore, and as his gaze darted ahead to check whether it would remain high enough to breathe his heart skipped a beat.

“Water... fall...”

His mouth opened to scream as Henry gazed down the impending abyss before them that relentlessly swallowed all water, and would swallow them also. It was far too late to prevent anything. His eye squeezed shut yet before Henry could scream a violent collision forced all air out of his lungs and sent a sting of sharp pain through his abdomen.

His arm just about managed to wrap around the rock that stood firmly against the water masses, barely breaching the surface. Yet to grasp it, he’d had to ease his grip on Thanatos’ neck.

“NOO!”, Henry helplessly watched the flier’s wet fur slip through his fingers and for a second a swell of panic numbed his senses, only to be broken by a violent jolt of pain. For a second Henry thought his arm would dislocate as Thanatos’ claw had tightly closed around his hand.

“Don’t... let... go”, he squeezed out before another pained scream escaped him. Something besides the ever-rushing water ran down his tightly shut fist. Henry clenched his jaw so hard it hurt and watched the blood that oozed from where Thanatos’ claws relentlessly dug into his skin drip into the abyss. In the faint glow of the water, it seemed almost black. “Don’t...”

“Let... go.”

Henry’s eye widened as he stared into dull amber slits.

“You...”

“Just let... go.”

The words thrust into Henry’s heart like a blade.

“NO!”, he cried and tightened his grip even further, despite the talons that still cut into his flesh. “Don’t... do this”, he pleaded, yet the amber was empty. No, the word pounded in his skull, not like this. Not like... _You are a PARASITE, Henry –_ he barely registered the tears that now relentlessly streamed down his cheeks – _a parasite that has attached itself to me, to drain the last bit of life I had left, and will not let go! Will not allow me to let it go! Let go. Let... go. Let... go._

It was not until he registered his hand was colored in a unanimous red from blood when he understood he would not be able to hold on for much longer. No, he desperately tightened his fist, I will not watch him fall. Watch him die. Watch him... Henry’s eye widened as he stared into the eyes of his flier. An image suddenly flashed before his inner eye and he was numbed with panic when he at last understood. It’s not him, Henry’s teeth gnashed against each other violently.

It’s me.

Then something struck his back from behind, another piece of debris. A jolt of pain shot through his shoulder and Henry let out a visceral scream as his hand reflexively opened. Thanatos’ talons tore through his skin as his grasp slipped.

Henry’s vision sparked and his throat would not voice a single sound as he caught a last glance into the panicked eyes of his flier before he was swallowed by the gaping abyss, leaving Henry to cling to the rock and almost unbelievingly stare after him...

Alone.


	12. Astray

The first thing Henry noticed was something nudging him in the side. “Hmm... five more minutes, okay?”, he mumbled. The nudging didn’t stop, “Death, come on, just let me –”

Then, something else nudged him in the other side. Frustrated, Henry flung his eye open, “Death, I swear –”

Henry winced back in shock. Before him was not Thanatos’ face – instead, at him stared two black, pearly eyes on stakes. The creature slowly extended a feeler to touch his face, and he felt something poking his side again. When he slowly turned his head, he saw a huge, distinct claw nudging him.

The creature sitting on top of Henry was fiery red and about six feet long. It had a second claw, like the one it had poked him with and was curiously staring at him now.

It’s a pincher, Henry realized and tried not to make any sudden movements. He did not know how hostile the pinchers usually were, in fact, he had never met one before. But when he slowly inched backward, he felt something in his back.

A second face, very similar to the one that was still hovering above him, stared down at him and Henry realized the giant lobster wasn’t alone.

“Are you alright?” He would not have been able to tell which one of the two had spoken, but the voice sounded somewhat distorted and was very low-pitched, yet he was able to understand it.

“Eh... I’m fine... I...” Henry tried hard to remember how he had ended up here. Where... even was... “here”? He slowly raised his throbbing head and looked around. He was lying next to a huge lake, a waterfall streamed into it from somewhere above this cave. The lake glowed... orange.

The realization, where he was, hit Henry like a tidal wave. This was the lake Kismet had always taken him to when they wanted to fish! This was where he had first caught fish without his eyes, this... of course, she had warned him the territory of the pinchers was close by.

Henry eyed the two that had... what had they done? “Uhm... where... how did I get here? Did you... pull me out of the water?” Henry asked when he realized he was soaking.

The second lobster now swayed his head. “You came down the waterfall. You were sleeping... we pulled you out. Water is dangerous when you are sleeping...”

Henry’s head started to spin. The water... the waterfall! Wait... THIS waterfall? Suddenly, images tore through the mist that clouded his memories like the cuts of a knife.

A river... he was holding... he was holding on to... Henry looked down at his right hand. It was sticky with dried blood, angry red gashes covered it, some of which were still seeping blood.

Thanatos.

The name hit him like a bucket of cold water, reanimating his limp body – he jolted up. “THANATOS!” Henry screamed. The pinchers winced back from the noise, but Henry didn’t care.

Surely, he was here somewhere. If Henry had survived the waterfall, there was no way the flier hadn’t. “Hey, did you see a flier here before me?”, he asked one of the pinchers.

“Flier was here. We saw.” The lobster answered, and new hope started rising in Henry.

“Flier left”, the other pincher sounded, and Henry froze in place instantly. “Wait... what?”

“Flier left”, the other repeated. “Wanted out, wanted to look for a way out. We said he was too hurt. He did not listen. He wanted out.”

Henry felt his legs give way and he collapsed on the floor again. His head was spinning, from the concussion and all the swarming thoughts that now clogged it. He had wanted out... to leave. Leave...

Thanatos’ words suddenly rang in his head, he remembered how he had tried to hold him, and the flier urging him to let go - _If you let me go, you will never see me again... doesn’t that sound great?_

Never... never see him again... It took Henry a second to process the meaning of the sentence, but then the terrible realization engulfed him and for a second, he saw stars again.

Henry suddenly started gagging. He crawled closer to the lake and threw up at last. Over and over, he gradually emptied his stomach of all the water he had swallowed. When nothing came up anymore, he remained in place, head hanging over the ledge that led to the water.

He was gone, Henry thought, he was... gone. I let him go... I let go, he thought I let go on purpose... The fear and... yes, disappointment, in Thanatos’ eyes, the moment he had let go, flashed in Henry’s mind. He is gone... he... left.

Henry felt he started gagging again, but nothing came anymore. His stomach was empty and suddenly he felt like someone had placed a ginormous rock on top of him, pressing him to the floor.

Henry couldn’t move. All he did was lie still, staring into the water. He wouldn’t have been able to tell how much time had passed, even if he would care, it could have been minutes our hours. It was all the same, anyway.

He thought he heard the lobsters say they had to leave after a while, but Henry still didn’t move. His mind was swamped with thoughts, self-pity, anger, desperation – too many emotions to count.

Most prominent of all was his own disgust with himself. Had he just held on, he thought... had he tried harder... had he talked things out with Thanatos sooner... had he not screamed... had he not... had he not lost his second bond for the same reason he had lost his first one.

Henry was pressing his face into the stone floor. At first, he did not realize that tears were streaming down his cheeks – as soon as he noticed, he felt his body shake from the sobs.

Never before, not shortly after the fall, not when the spinners had abducted Thanatos – not ever had he wanted so much to just throw himself into the lake here and now, and end his sorry, pathetic life, like in this very moment.

The screaming in his head wouldn’t stop though, it never stopped, it threatened to overpower him. Henry realized he was digging his nails into the back of his hand. He passively watched them pierce his skin until he saw blood. He did not even feel the pain... he felt nothing.

What had... even happened? His mind was foggy, the memories buried beneath the pain. The... argument. He had... he had blamed Thanatos for not being honest with him, and yet he had not been honest himself. Had he just brought it up immediately, he thought, had he talked about what he heard, he would maybe have the answers to his questions now, instead of... What was there even left? Without Thanatos... what was there left...?

Henry would have given everything – all his skills, all his fancy gadgets, and weapons, for a way to turn back time. But... would that even have prevented anything?

An even worse realization now overcame him – it wasn’t just that he had lost his second bond because of his own lack in honesty as well, no – Thanatos’ words that he had said to Hamnet, rang in his ears. All of it... had been true. Before, there had always been a rest of hope in him remaining, believing Thanatos hadn’t truly meant it. But now... the doubts were gone. It was all way too clear now.

He never... cared for Henry... never even... never... bonded to him because he cared for or trusted him. He did it to save his own conscience, nothing more. And now that he found out... now he didn’t even pity him anymore. He left him here to die... left him here...

In that case... even if he could find a way to travel back in time, to change his words and actions... It would still not change... anything. Henry felt his body tremble from crying. Had he truly lost his second bond today... or did he never even have one?

He squinted his eye and in a fit of anger at himself, at Thanatos, at everything – slammed his head against the stone floor. The pain from the impact was misted by the pain inside his head. Frustratedly, he did the same thing again, this time he blacked out for a second, seeing stars. Henry wanted to do it again and again, until he would not regain consciousness at all, but he lacked the strength.

He knew he deserved it – the pain that filled him now, the frustration, the anger, the panic – he deserved it all. For letting it get this far, for not learning from his own stupid mistakes, for actually believing Thanatos... anyone... could still... care about him. For being the pathetic, worthless traitor that had gotten what he deserved at last.

Henry had no idea how long he remained lying at the lake, several hours maybe. He had no intention of getting back up. Never again. He was not determined enough to drown himself in the lake, neither to get up. He would simply lie here until he died from blood loss, thirst or some creature, looking for an easy snack. He had no preference. All he knew was that this was it – the universe had fought and finally took the last ounce of life from his body. There was nothing left.

His eyes were closed. Henry was focused on not succumbing to the maelstrom of burning thoughts in his mind, that’s why he hadn’t noticed anything before he suddenly felt something grab his arm, yank him up and throw him over the shoulder.

He was too weak to even open his eye and see who it was. The last thing he remembered was his face pressing into fur now... fur that was... light grey...

When Henry opened his eye, at last, he wanted to immediately close it again. This time, the black oblivion of unconsciousness did not erase his memories, instead, they swarmed him immediately after he awoke.

He slowly turned his face, recognizing where he was, and for a second a wave of relief engulfed him, he thought it had all been a dream. Thanatos arriving, them going to the ice caves, the rats, the river, the... Then his gaze met his left hand. He saw the marks of fingernails... his own nails, and the relief was washed away by desperation immediately.

“So, what was it that left you with no strength to get back up on your feet?” The voice that now spoke from the shade sounded familiar, and Henry tilted his head. Kismet sat in a corner of her own cave, staring at him with somewhat knowing eyes.

He had no strength to speak. But even if he had, Henry wouldn’t know how to express any of his emotions in words. Kismet apparently guessed she wouldn’t get a response out of him any time soon. Instead, she stood up, fetched his own water sack, and tossed it his way. “Drink.”

“You should... have let me... die...” His voice was so weak and hoarse, Henry almost didn’t recognize it.

Kismet snorted. “And have all the hard work and time I poured into you go to waste? Forget about it. And now drink, before I stuff the entire water sack down your throat.”

It took Henry almost an hour to find the strength to lift his hand and drink, and several more to finally rise up and eat the fish Kismet had caught for him. He looked around while chewing on the food, and noticed his bag and his weapons in the corner of the cave. She must have fished them out of the lake before she had brought him here.

“You know, I would ask what happened, but I don’t think you’d give me an answer anyway, so I won’t.” Her words were a great relief. She was right... Henry would not have been able to talk about any of it, not even if he wanted to.

Kismet watched him, the blank expression in his eyes, the stains of tears, dirt and blood on his face, the claw marks on his right hand, the ones from his own nails on his left. “Seems like life brought you to your knees after all”, she suddenly spoke. “Sooner than I expected, to be honest.”

Henry stared at her, confused, for a moment, before he remembered her words from one of their first encounters.

_ I may not know what you’ve been through so far but had life really brought you to your knees already, I would see it.  _ Her words rang in his ears, and he threw her a glance, from the corner of his eye. “It did.”

“Henry, I have a job for you.” The exiled prince turned his head. “What kind?”

Almost a week had passed since he had awoken by the lake, and for the lack of better options, Henry had moved in with Kismet again. Also because he was grateful for her company – she asked no questions and always found something to occupy his mind with, before it strayed too far back.

After he had finally found the strength to think again, about a day after she had rescued him, Henry had revived his rules, from all the way back, shortly after the fall. The ones about not thinking of the past and the future.

There was no past – if there was no past, it could not hurt him. He had forbidden himself every thought of what had happened over the course of the last... what was it now? Ten, eleven months?

Henry thought not of the future either. There was no future. Not anymore. There was just... waking up, getting through the day, and going back to sleep, harboring the slim hope he might never wake up at all.

He found he was in this almost weird state now, where he had nothing left to live for... and yet no apparent reason or motivation to die either. All the thought of his own death made him feel like, was... indifferent.

Yet, Kismet was the one who gave him a reason to get up every day. She always had some sort of task or exercise... or challenge. And somehow, she even found the correct words to motivate him.

“Oh, this is a fun one.” She snarled, poking her head into the cave he was sitting in.

Henry suppressed a chuckle. Fun. He did not remember the last time he had had fun. He had wiped it from his memory, after all. All he had felt, ever since he had regained the strength to feel, was emptiness.

Shortly after he had grown strong enough, Kismet had tried to occupy him with battle training, like before. She had hoped it would wake his spirits, and while Henry had agreed to it, it... had not felt the same anymore. Nothing did.

The things he used to do for fun, like climbing, fighting or running the parkour could not break through this new numbness that had taken over. Not even practicing his new echolocation skills or more mercenary jobs could. He had taken one a few days ago, just to try if it would be different, but it wasn’t. It had been disappointingly easy, with his new skills, that was all. It’s not like Henry minded, though. If he was to feel like this for the rest of his days, so be it. There were worse fates than this.

He stared at Mys, at the handle – the bit of black tissue that was still wrapped around it, and immediately almost slapped himself. The past is the past... the past is the... “Are you coming or not?” Almost apathetic, Henry packed away the dagger and stepped out of the cave, joining her.

To his surprise, he saw she wasn’t alone. Two crawlers stood not far away, their antennas shaking with probably fear. Henry remembered how reluctant they had been to let him come here in the first place, and asked himself what could have possibly driven them to do it themselves now.

“Well, actually, it’s these two that have the job offer”, she grinned. “Go, talk to them, before they faint from fear.”

Usually, Henry would have joined her in making fun of the crawlers, but he did not feel like it anymore. He simply gazed at them, raising an eyebrow. “Well?”

“The Wielder of Light and Rider of Death has to help us, has to.” One of them finally spoke, and a spear pierced Henry’s heart at the name.

“It is JUST Wielder of Light if you don’t mind”, he hissed, and the crawlers winced back, exchanging glances.

“Oh, leave them alone, they are trembling already, after all.” Kismet’s voice was friendly for once, and Henry sighed. “Okay, so... what exactly is the job now?”

Henry walked along the tunnel the crawlers had pointed him to. This job was one he would have relished a few months ago, now it was... like any other task. What was the difference, how he spent his time, after all? Be it hunting for Firebeetles in the caves or rescuing a bunch of crawler prisoners from one of the gnawer-arenas?

They had promised him goods for saving some of their own, the rats had apparently captured to have killed in the arena, but in all honesty, Henry didn’t care about the reward anymore. What good would some fuel, crops, and medicine do him, in Kismet’s cave? He knew how to see in the dark now, the Firebeetles were just fine for food, and medicine... medicine was for people who were afraid of death. He was not... not anymore.

No, he was doing this because it was something to do. It was something to... focus his mind on, to keep his thoughts from wandering. No past... he repeated again. No past... just the moment. And the moment is – free some captured crawlers from a rat arena.

He had not even realized there was more than one, but apparently, there was one here. According to the crawlers, there was a flock of rats, led by another former general of Gorger, that had used the ice caves to travel here and settle down, close to the citadel, a few months ago. The plague had not reached them, like it had the rest of their species, and they were apparently not too worried for the rest of their people. Instead, they spent their time here, vandalizing, holding their games and pestering the crawlers – now that the cutters were out of the picture.

Henry stared down into the ginormous pit. He was high up now, most likely around two hundred feet above what was obviously the arena. To get down, he would need to free-climb the distance, which was nothing he minded though. This one was not in an enclosed cave, rather in a huge cavern, Henry estimated around five hundred feet high, and about as wide too.

The arena itself was located at the bottom of a big pit in the middle of the cave. He saw rats there, squatting around the middle, like they had, all this time ago, when he and –

Henry squinted his eye. He had almost thought the name he had forbidden himself to spare a single thought to. He had almost broken his own rule again. No past... there was no... The cheering of the crowd echoed in his ears, the present one and... the scarred body of Sizzleblood... she had looked so much like Kismet, and then... the stone to the head... and... alone.

He had left him alone. Knives cut through the numbness that enveloped Henry’s heart. Cleaver and the others, the cliff... the Prince of Rats.

Henry wanted to scream. Scream to get the pain out, scream to punish himself... to... He realized he was digging his nails into his own skin again. Kismet’s voice sounded in his head... _Hurting yourself will not make it any better. It will make it worse, actually._

But the thing was... it did make it... durable. This time, Henry managed to stop before it started actually bleeding. His nails had left four angry red marks, and Henry realized he was clenching his jaw. Not again.

Focus – he screamed at himself inside his head. He was here not to dwell on forgotten memories, but for a job. And that was exactly what he would do now.

It had not been hard to locate the prison. It was nearby, which made sense since the prisoners were often needed in the arena. He had used his fur soles to sneak past the pit and around half an hour later found the hole with the crawlers.

There were no guards, as the rats were apparently confident enough to think their prisoners would not escape anyway. Besides, they probably thought if these ones escaped, they could easily catch more.

He tied a rope he brought to a stalactite – for a short second an image flashed in his head, him using his own belt to do the same thing, a cave with a dozen rats in them, a ledge at the top... an execution – but he angrily chased it off.

Instead, he descended down into the hole. The crawlers were huddled together, shaking in fear of the stranger, Henry realized he must look terrifying to them, his clothes from rat fur, his eyepatch, and the weapons – but he quickly reassured them he had been paid to rescue them.

When the crawlers had all finally climbed up the rope out of the hole, and Henry had followed, they exchanged a “thank you, we will remember you always, remember you” with him, before disappearing into a nearby tunnel. Henry assumed they knew their way home.

He sighed, almost disappointed this job had gone so well too. What would he occupy himself with for the rest of the day now? Or should he just go to bed?

Then, suddenly, something touched his shoulder. Henry jolted around, drawing his sword, but he instantly saw it was too many.

“Looks like someone thinks he can get away with rescuing our prisoners”, one of the rats snarled, and Henry raised his sword. No fear or panic engulfed him, if he would die today, so be it.

“Then come at me”, his voice was cold, as were his eyes, most likely. Upon noticing that, the two rats that stood closest to him exchanged glances. Suddenly, someone shoved them aside. The rat that emerged was taller than the rest, almost seven feet, and Henry thought he seemed familiar for some reason. Then he noticed the huge, jagged scar across his chest.

Longclaw?

“Someone is without fear, I see”, his voice was much calmer now, then it had been in the ice caves. “I am not afraid of death”, Henry answered.

“You are not? Hmm...” He exchanged a few words with one of his followers. Henry focused his hearing, but could only make out the words “use him”.

“Hey, do not talk behind my back about my fate!” He took a step forward. “I am not scared of facing you, neither am I of battling in your arena, if that is what you expect me to do to earn my freedom.” Maybe this day would get exciting after all, he thought suddenly.

Longclaw grinned. “Freedom... freedom... well, perhaps... depending on how good you are... you could earn a little more than that.”

Henry listened up. “Wait... are you... offering me a... job? Me? A human?”

Longclaw chuckled. “Oh, we have had stranger creatures fight in the arena. And besides, a human champion... that would surely draw the masses in. IF you are good, that is.”

“The best”, was all Henry said, and for the first time, over the course of this week, he felt like he almost looked forward to something.


	13. The Lone Rider

“Today, fellow gnawers – today will be a glorious day indeed!” Henry heard the voice of Longlaw’s announcer, Dustfur, yell to the crowd that had assembled to see him fight. The arena was filled to the last seat, like always in recent times – Longclaw’s prediction about a human champion drawing attention had been true.

The exiled prince was standing in a corner of the arena, hidden out of sight, waiting for his name to be announced like it was custom with champions. His jaw was clenched and his stare cold from beyond the mask he had carved out of the shoulder blade of a rat. It covered the entire right half of his face and Henry had only loosely based it on a skull this time, he had focused more on making it look intimidating – it was his face in the arena, after all.

“Over the course of the last three months”, Dustfur continued, “he was undefeated, our human champion – today, no other than Threeleg and Crusher, two of Longclaw’s finest warriors, seek to claim his throne as reigning champion of this arena. Is it custom to have two fight one? No – it is not!”

Henry heard laughter – “But do we or anyone care? Also no!”

Even more laughter sounded. “And you know who cares least of all – our challenged champion himself! When I asked him if he was ready to take them on together, you know what he told me? He said –”, Dustfur paused and Henry smirked, knowing what was coming – “He said – BRING IT!”

The audience roared with approval. It was truly strange how little it had taken to get the rats here to cheer for him. His first victory, the very same day Lonclaw had offered him the job, had sufficed, and they had chanted his name by the end of the day.

Henry was aware it was a little suspicious Gorger’s former general had even suggested it, especially this quickly. Either he just had a really sick sense of humor – or he had some sort of different interest in Henry fighting in his arena – or both. But to be perfectly honest, the exiled prince cared little for Longclaw’s intentions – as long as he gave him the opportunity to fight.

“The brothers who defeated the cutters at the waterway and the humans in the battle for the great river – Threeleg and Crusher!” Dustfur called the names and Henry heard cheering. He perceived the two rats enter the arena, waving at their comrades.

They were both grey, one lighter, the other darker. Threeleg had, as his name suggested, lost one of his arms in the past, it was nothing but a stump, severed right above the elbow, while Crusher’s face was split by a long scar, similar to Ripred’s.

“...Against our one and only – undefeated champion for more than forty battles, the Wielder of the Sword of Fire and the _Man Who Knows Not Death_ himself – the LONE RIDER!”

Henry stepped forward, into the light of the braziers that illuminated the arena, and grated his firestone against his sword, as if to undermine Dustfur’s description.

Then he raised the flaming sword in the air, voicing a haunting battle cry, that was picked up by the audience immediately. Henry grinned behind the mask – this would be fun.

“You know, one day, you’ll get yourself killed in that arena.” Kismet’s voice sounded almost worried, but Henry shrugged it off. “So what? I mean, who would actually miss me if I died, hm?”

He could envision clearly that she was watching him, from the darkness of the corner of her cave, how he reluctantly bandaged up the wound Crusher’s claws had torn in his left shoulder. Fitting the scar Sizzleblood had left in the right one, almost exactly a year ago, he thought.

The two rats had been more of a challenge than most opponents he had fought so far, and yet at the end of the day, he had left just their corpses on the floor of the arena, defending his title successfully once more.

Oh, how right Ripred had been, when he said he would fight like no human ever fought, if he learned from Kismet, Henry thought.

This second level of echolocation made him feel so overpowered at times, that he almost forgot he was not entirely invincible. Together with his eyesight, this new sixth sense was almost like an inbuilt analyzer of his surroundings – distance, force, and speed had turned into measurable numbers in his head, making reacting to attacks efficiently and effectively so much easier than he had ever thought possible. How could any enemy defeat him, after all, if the sound of their steps told Henry what they were about to do before the attack happened?

Henry intuitively touched his injured shoulder, that stung, whenever he moved it too much. He thought about why he was doing this to himself – maybe he had initially agreed to it because he thought it would bring him joy again – but no. All Henry felt while fighting was the all-consuming numbness that engulfed him almost constantly. He found no joy in killing, even now.

Sure, it was nice to have a crowd cheer for him and the arena was exciting and provided something to do – almost like a goal, like something that made striving to become even better worth it again. But was that truly the only reason?

Henry knew it wasn’t – and he also knew what was. All this fighting... it was his attempt to rid himself of the numbness, at last. The arena made him feel again, at least to an extent. Feeling... feeling anything, be it pain, had turned into a sensation, over the course of the last months. A sensation... like an addiction, something he would not be able to stop doing if he wanted to.

“I know you do not care if you die or not... but do not fall under the false belief you are invincible now. Because nobody is.” Kismet’s voice sounded scolding, but there was something else in it now. Henry thought it could maybe be understanding.

He threw her a glance and suddenly asked himself if she had ever been where he was now – fighting for the sheer sake of fighting... and for the sensation of making yourself feel something again, be it the pain from injuries. After all, where had all her scars come from? She was way too skilled of a warrior to have suffered so many injuries without excessively exposing herself to danger, was she not?

“Quit staring at me lad, and tend to your wound. If you like, we can spar after dinner.” With that, she disappeared from the entrance, leaving Henry to his injury – and his thoughts.

__

_ Bound to fall and then to rise, life reaped by Death, in darkness flies.  _ Henry realized he was moving his lips to form the familiar words. _Life reaped by Death... in darkness flies._ Life reaped... life saved... or life taken. Henry pondered on the double meaning of the word.

He glanced over the rest of the prophecy before letting the worn leather scroll snap shut. The Death Rider... the... Lone Rider. Henry did not know why he had introduced himself to Longclaw with this modified version of his title – or maybe he did.

He was not the Death Rider anymore. Because to be the Death Rider, he needed Death. And Death was gone.

Henry was surprised at how little the thought phased him anymore. He was almost ashamed of how much he had let Thanatos’ betrayal get to him, back then. He gazed at his right hand, the claw marks were still visible, though all that remained was a confusing network of white lines.

The great numbness in his chest grew, the more he thought of the flier. It was like there was something behind it, emotions, desperately trying to claw their way out, but in vain.

Henry scoffed at himself – Thanatos was the past, and the past was insignificant. He realized if he never had to see his face ever again that would be the greatest gift this universe could still give him. So what if he had never cared for him? Who was Henry to need other people to care about him anyway?

His thoughts ran back to Luxa, to their childhood together – gone, ripped away for good, because of his own fault. Ares – his first bond who he had betrayed, and who had betrayed him, most likely dead from the plague. His parents – dead by the claws of Gorger and his companions, maybe even the very same rats who cheered him on in the arena almost every day. And now Thanatos, his second bond, that had not even truly been a bond in the first place, as their entire relationship had been based on nothing but practicality.

It’s not like Henry didn’t see his point though – not getting attached seemed to be a good idea actually. After all, at this point, Henry held no regrets anymore. All his own failures and losses had ever done was move him forward, after all.

Mindlessly, he traced the two fierce red lines through his good eye, an injury from a battle a few days ago. His opponent had been a rat that Longclaw had sentenced to death in the arena. Henry had made it swift for her – but she had put up a fight – and left a mark.

For a second, the exiled prince considered counting how many scars the more or less forty battles he had fought so far, over the course of what must be more than ninety days, had left on his body – but then he realized if he would do that, it would most likely take the entire evening. And he had better things to do with his time, than counting scars.

He and Kismet circled each other in their training cave. She had allowed him to put up his torch to practice under the same conditions he had in the arena, and Henry’s focus lied on the scarred rat only.

Over the course of the last three months, they had sparred regularly, and Kismet had revealed many of the secrets she had disclosed about the art of battle to him. Yet she herself remained undefeated – even if at this point he put up a decent fight to her at least.

Many times Kismet’s lectures and their training had saved his life in the arena – he had battled everything from cutters, over buzzers and stingers to countless rats – even a couple pinchers once, and then there had been that trio of spinners, about a month ago. There is a method to victory against everything – Kismet always said.

Henry didn’t nearly think that systematically, he was far too spontaneous, enjoying leaving a few things up to chance, to ever get behind Kismet’s almost agonizing way to think in systems and patterns – but he usually understood the lesson behind the words. The rest she just bored him with to spite him, he was almost certain of that.

Now, he sensed her attack and leaped to the side, seeing the back of her head in reach. With Mys, that he had left in the sheath to avoid actually hurting her, he sliced at Kismet’s head. She blocked, almost unnaturally fast, and counterattacked immediately.

Henry ducked away and slipped through in between her hind legs, kicking her in the side with his foot. She lost balance for a second and barely dodged his incoming attack. “You are truly getting good!”, she heaved heavily, and Henry smirked. “And who do you think I have to thank for, for that – except myself, of course?”

Henry was sitting outside the cave, torch beside him. He had once again not defeated Kismet today, but he was certain his time would come – sooner or later.

One year... he thought, the feeling strangely grim. One year in exile... almost exactly, at this point. One year of... what? Hardships? Change? Pain? Loneliness? Definitely.

The prophecy of the Death Rider came to mind. _Darkness, solitude, and pain, endure them all and reap the gain._ Darkness... solitude, and pain. He surely had endured it all – he had even mastered darkness now. Solitude... solitude would be his life now, Kismet’s company was welcomed, but the longer he stayed with her, the more he thought of just leaving. He couldn’t stay with her forever... she had her own loneliness to get back to, after all, and he now had his. Oh, and pain... pain was a nigh daily sensation now, almost like an addiction, an escape from the all-consuming numbness that usually enveloped his heart.

Henry pondered – how similar were his and Kismet’s stories...? The feelings they had to deal with...? Henry realized he had never asked her for her own past, and yet he was not sure if he even needed to know.

He had made such a drama of Thanatos not telling him his... and now? What was so different with Kismet? Henry knew exactly what it was, yet he had no way to express his feelings in words.

His relationship with Kismet was just... different. They didn’t need words or stories... they had a different form of connection. Henry suddenly asked himself if it was mutual need, in a way. Did Kismet need him? Did... he need Kismet? No, Henry thought, yet the term still came closest to describing them. They did not need each other to survive, but they needed each other to... give their life meaning.

It was what he thought Thanatos and he had shared too... an almost higher form of mutual need... until he had found out the truth.

Henry sighed and took his backpack. He had been reluctant to even open it, over the course of the last months, for it held unwanted memories. At the bottom, safely stored, still lied the Skyrock, that he had never ended up taking to Teslas.

Henry had not seen the nibblers, or anyone except for Kismet, really, over the course of the last three months. In truth, he did not know how he could face them, after everything that had happened. He thought of little Curie – how was he supposed to tell her Thanatos would not come for her anymore? Or maybe he was – maybe that was where the flier had run to – only one more reason to stay away from the colony.

Henry dug through the backpack and fetched his mother’s notebook. There was nothing any of the sketches of the gadgets in it could still do for him – the last page, the unfinished idea he had had, shortly after the quest in the jungle, opened, and to his surprise, a jolt of pain pierced Henry’s heart at its sight. Wasn’t he... over it, at this point?

His thumb traced the almost lazily scribbled lines, reminiscing on how he had first had this idea, how excited he had been to try it. Now he would never be able to.

A completely unexpected wave of sadness engulfed him suddenly, and he shut the notebook immediately, before burying it at the bottom of his backpack. Enough with the reminiscing – it would do him no good to dwell on the things that would never be, instead, he should focus on the present.

Henry reluctantly pulled out a piece of bone he had collected at some point, and in the light from the torch, started carving. He had started this habit soon after he had begun his career as the Lone Rider champion in the rat arena, and by now, had even gotten fairly good at it.

Henry remembered the first time he had attempted to use Mys to transform a bone into a rat, and when he had shown Kismet, she had stared at it through the vision aid for a second, before asking what it was.

“A rat, of course... can’t you see?”

She had stared for another second, before blurting out “It is hideous.”

Henry had known she had been right, and yet her words had stung. Instead of letting them discourage him though, he had taken them the way she had probably meant them – as a challenge.

Over the course of the last three months, he had practiced quite a bit and was the proud owner of a whole collection of self-made figurines now. He had taken to depicting all the species he had defeated in the arena so far and more. There was one of a mouse too, it was a mix of Teslas’ and Curie’s features, perhaps a grown-up version of Curie, Henry always thought.

The latest addition, one he had finished only a few days ago, depicted Kismet herself – with all her scars and the vision aid, that the little figurine held to her eye. When he had shown it to her, she had stared at it for a while, before chuckling – “Godness, do I look terrible.”

Henry had laughed, taking it as her complaining about her own looks and not his carving, and as a compliment to his accuracy.

Now, he stared at the freshly-carved face of the new figurine he was working on – at himself. He was wearing the new mask, his gaze was cold and distant, and in his hand, he clutched Mys. Henry could almost not believe this was who he was now – not that he was complaining, not even in the slightest, but still.

He suddenly remembered how he had stared into a waterfall, not recognizing his own face, when he had first visited the nibbler colony, almost a year ago. The frightened, traumatized, haggard face of a kid, that had been scared to lose himself.

He mindlessly spun the unfinished figurine of himself around in his hand. If his one-year-younger self would be able to see him now... would he even recognize him? Would he... like what he saw? Would he think he had lost himself too much?

Henry stared into his own face – he had most certainly changed much more than he had wanted to, and yet he was not unpleased with who he had become. That was how change worked though, was it not?

_ You can only change as much as you allow yourself to change _ – a voice suddenly rang in his ears, and Henry sighed. Had he... allowed himself to become who he was now? Or had the universe forced the change on him?

He stared at his face – scarred from countless battles, mutilated from the serpent, his hair that now reached beyond his shoulders, that he had taken to wearing tied together. The clothes from raw materials – bounty won in the arena or taken as tribute from fallen enemies. Was he... still himself... beneath all that?

Henry gave it some thought and realized he would not have been able to answer that question if his life depended on it. After all... in a way, he was not – but at the same time... how could he ever truly stop being himself?

Henry tugged at his mask and made sure his ignifer-pellets were ready and within reach. He was standing at his designated spot, in the shade of the back end of the arena, almost reluctantly awaiting his next opponent.

Fifty battles, his tally counted now – this was going to be a special one, Longclaw had promised. Something about the expression in his eyes had made the exiled prince wonder about his intentions again, and yet battle was battle, Henry told himself. How could this one be special?

Four months... more than four entire months Henry had spent with almost nothing except fighting in this very arena. His days had been... almost monotonous... nothing noteworthy, really. Waking up, practicing, maybe a battle – more practicing, and then going to sleep again. Eating and working on his carving collection in between, or tending to whatever new injury the countless battles had brought.

He had recently started wondering if this would be his life now – if the time of great adventure and exploration was over. He knew he had had so many plans – crossing the waterway, creating new inventions with Teslas, seeing Luxa and Nerissa again – maybe, if he was alive, talking things out with Ares... Henry had wanted to do so many things still, yet he felt like he had missed his chance.

All his goals, his dreams, his ambitions... he had a feeling their time was over now, and this life... this arena... was all he would ever have the mind to focus on anymore. Until it finally struck him down.

There were worse things to occupy yourself with, he thought, and yet a part of him longed for the past. No matter how hard he had tried to bury that part of his, it was still there, almost laughing at what had become of him now.

While Henry was certain his younger self would not mind most changes he had undergone over the last year, he certainly would mind this... this loss of spirit, of ambition... this apathy, that had controlled almost his every thought and action for what were now four months.

What had caused it, he wondered – and at the same time, he knew it very well. Kismet herself had told him – the world had finally broken him. Henry knew she was right, no matter how much he tried to deny it, no matter how many times he told himself he didn’t care anymore – he did.

Everything that had happened to him before, all the agonizing, traumatizing events, all of it, from being ripped out of his peaceful life, away from his home and family, over losing his eye, facing countless powerful enemies on his own, over darkness, solitude, and pain – it all had not been able to break him. No, Henry knew it had, in fact, made him stronger, every single experience had taught him something, had served a purpose.

But Thanatos’ betrayal... it had been the last nail in the coffin. He despised that it had been Thanatos, out of everyone, who had managed to break him – he didn’t wish to grant him the satisfaction – and yet he knew very well it was true.

When Henry heard Dustfur’s voice, he snapped out of it. Grim thoughts wouldn’t get him anywhere now. He should focus on preparing for the battle, instead of wasting his thoughts on useless matters.

“Today marks the day our famed champion the LONE RIDER could celebrate his FIFTIETH STRAIGHT VICTORY in this honorable establishment!” The announcer’s voice was almost drowned in cheers.

“But, dear viewers... he is not facing just anyone today. Before this battle begins, let’s all give our greatest champion of all times the WELCOME HE DESERVES!”

Henry looked up, surprised. Why were they calling him in before his opponent? Usually, the reigning champion entered last...

He nonetheless stepped into the light and was welcomed by deafening cheers. Henry automatically raised his arms – this would be his day. He was not afraid – whoever Longclaw would pin him up against, he was certain of victory at this point.

“And now... for the first time in the history of this – and any other establishment of the sort – we present to you in our arena...”

Henry looked at the opposite entrance to the pit, where he expected his opponent. But instead, a shadow suddenly darted down – from above him. Henry winced as he perceived the very familiar sound of wings. The creature circled above him once, before landing in the sand that covered the round center of the arena.

Henry’s eyes widened in shock, he almost dropped the sword he had already drawn and had been ready to ignite.

“... the battle between the Man Who Knows Not Death... and DEATH HIMSELF!”


	14. Unbroken Pledge

Henry’s eyes darted to Dustfur, what did he mean by “Death himself”? But the flier that now cowered on the other side of the arena, left him no time to question anything.

Henry had not even enough time to ignite his sword, before he leaped forward, darting at him, a ghastly scream sounding from behind the mask that covered his face.

Henry dodged in the last second, slicing at the flier – since when did fliers fight... without humans? He had never heard of such a thing before and been accordingly shocked when he had seen his opponent.

Henry stared at the flier for a second... from what he could see, his fur was black and the claws at the joints of his ginormous wings were adorned with rat teeth to make them longer. The teeth showed old stains of blood, as did the claws on the flier’s feet. Like he... never even washed the blood off...

Henry would have wondered why, if he’d had the time. He registered the flier was wearing something around his neck... like a string with severed rat claws, and his face was covered by the skull of one, very similar to the mask he himself had worn when he had met the quest on the waterway.

It’s almost like someone... dressed him up, Henry thought, then the battle left him no time to think anymore.

The flier was fast and aggressive, yet Henry dodged all his attacks with ease. He was in no hurry to kill him – he was way too interested in what he had in store. Henry had learned quickly that, in the arena, the audience didn’t like it when a battle ended too fast. It was more about who put on the best show, not who killed who faster. And if Henry was good at something, it was pleasing an audience.

The exiled prince had just dodged an attack from above by rolling off through the sand. In the next moment, he was on his feet again, sword firmly gripped, waiting for the flier to come closer.

This time though, his opponent didn’t immediately zoom in on him again. Instead, Henry noticed he flew a circle above his head, before suddenly nosediving towards him. Then, Henry saw nothing but a black trail, whizzing around him with admirable speed.

The exiled prince was dazed for a moment, that’s when the flier stuck – Henry felt a sharp pain pierce his shoulder, the right one, the one Sizzleblood had torn open so many months ago, to the point where he had had to resort to using his sling because he had been barely able to hold his sword. Back then, Thanatos had had to distract her while Henry had collected stones, by... by...

Henry’s head suddenly started spinning – and not from the flier that had now ended his maneuver around him and retreated to safe distance again.

By... Henry saw it before his inner eye, like it had only happened yesterday... by... performing a... coiler... a coiler around his opponent, seeking to daze and disorient her...

His head darted up – barely in time to dodge another attack, he had stopped paying the battle all his attention, but how could he?

This... this maneuver, the coiler... had that become such a trend among the rats that this flier somehow picked up on it? But how could it... Thanatos had only performed it once, and Henry was fairly certain that he had come up with this type of use for it first.

Death... himself. A wave of panic suddenly engulfed Henry and he stared at the flier above him, who now dove again, seeking to rip his head off with his bloodied claws. Henry’s gaze darted over to his wing... the left one. He dodged his attack, counterstriking automatically – the flier sounded a pained cry when Henry hit his foot with the sword. His flight became unstable for a moment and he remained close to the ground for a second more than he normally would have – that’s when Henry saw it.

The stitch was almost invisible, black fabric on black tissue, but it was nonetheless visible – _Hey, I mean you look like a patchwork rug, but if it’s working...!_ Henry gripped the handle of Mys automatically, that had the tissue from that very same wing wrapped around it, still... This was... impossible...

He held his ground on the floor, trying to keep his head from spinning. I need to see, Henry thought, I need to see his face. To be... certain. Absolutely certain.

Henry focused his senses – he clearly envisioned the strap of the mask. Precision, he thought – his brain knew exactly how far away the flier was and with what speed he was approaching, and it calculated the exact moment to strike for Henry.

With a swift motion, the exiled prince leaped to the side, when the flier finally reached him, and drew Mys at the same moment. With impeccable precision, he sliced at the strap and cut it in half, the mask fell off immediately.

Like in slow-motion, Henry saw the flier fly a zig-zag pattern upward when he realized the mask was gone. Turn around... Henry thought, tightening the grip around Mys until his knuckles were white. Just... turn around.

When the flier finally did, only to immediately zoom in on Henry for attack again, the exiled prince could do nothing but stare in shock. The impact catapulted him several feet forward, he landed on his back, having all air forcefully pressed out of his lungs for a second.

In the last moment, he rolled to the side – before Thanatos’ enhanced claws pierced the ground where his head had just been, a few heartbeats ago. Henry tried to chase the daze, the shock brought with it, away, now was not the time to get distracted – yet here he was.

Did... Thanatos not recognize him? Henry determinately tore his own mask off, tossing it to the side.

“Death, it’s me!”, he cried – nothing concealing the gruesome scar that covered almost the entire right half of his face anymore – while blocking the claws of the flier he had once called bond.

The force of Henry’s parry catapulted Thanatos away, he landed on all fours, a few feet away from the exiled prince, but when Henry looked for a sign of recognition or familiarity in his eyes, all he saw was emptiness and aggression. Thanatos opened his mouth for an unworldly scream, baring his teeth.

Was... this where he had been all this time? Right here... in the same arena? A hundred questions suddenly jolted through his mind, why had they never met before, then? What was he still doing here? Why was... Longclaw. Longclaw had mentioned a special battle today... had he known of the... connection between Henry and Thanatos?

He might have seen me in the ice caves, the exiled prince thought – did he do this on purpose?

The crowd around them was roaring now, they were enjoying themselves more than usual as this battle was exciting – no clear superiority, at least seemingly.

The confusion and shock, that had filled him up to this point, disappeared, and, all of a sudden, seething anger boiled up in Henry. “IS THIS WHAT YOU WANT THEN?!” He screamed in Thanatos’ direction, feeling a jolt of adrenaline and fresh focus fill him. “Do you want me dead THAT BADLY?! Was it not enough to LEAVE ME – DO YOU WANT TO KILL ME YOURSELF?!”

The only response Henry received was a roar and another attack. That’s when he knew – this was the day one of them would die. And Henry also knew it would not be him.

Had he before fought only for show, everything within Henry was now determined to kill. In an almost blinding rage, he wielded his sword with all of his skill, leaving a couple angry slices along Thanatos’ body. The flier bled from several wounds now – but he too seemed determined to strike him down. Henry soon had a gash on his upper leg and another across his back, but in the heat of the battle, he did not even feel the pain.

Then, Thanatos managed to close his teeth around Henry’s arm and when the exiled prince finally shook him, he had left a deep bite mark on his skin. It burnt like fire, but only fueled the rage within Henry.

This time, his sword flew at the flier’s face and left a gashing mark, that formed an x-shape together with Thanatos’ other scar. His pained scream was high-pitched and ghastly, he was vulnerable.

Henry’s body and brain instinctively saw the opening in his defenses, he leaped forward, gripping his sword with both hands – ready to thrust it into Thanatos’ throat – and missed.

For a second, Henry stood there, across the flier, sword next to his throat, panting heavily from the battle, staring at him with his one remaining eye. He had missed... on purpose, of course... he had... how could he not?

All his rage suddenly dropped, the adrenaline left him and all Henry really wanted to do was collapse and cry, right here, in the center of this arena filled with rats.

But Thanatos wasn’t that forgiving. The moment he realized Henry had spared him, he flung his wing at Henry’s hand, forcing him to drop the sword. Then, the exiled prince felt a sharp pain, unlike any he had experienced over the course of the last four months in his stomach – he looked down and saw Thanatos’ claw, to the root, piercing his side. Henry stared at it, unbelieving, for a second, before he felt his legs give way.

At the very same moment, Thanatos smacked the side of his head, sending him flying several feet, before he finally lied still on the floor. The flier instantly leaped at him, and Henry instinctively reached up to grab onto him like he had, back when he had lost his eye. But this time, Thanatos did not cower over him in fear – no, he remained motionless, bloodied claw still raised, and stared down at Henry with eyes like stones, glowing with the familiar amber light.

“Death...”, Henry whispered, he felt a tear run down his cheek. It was like Thanatos’ claw had not only pierced his flesh, but also the numbness that Henry had built up around his emotions, and he felt the seething grief he had kept in for so long seep out now, far worse than the physical pain from his injuries.

He registered Thanatos was still cowering over him – he had now bared his teeth, ready to finish Henry off any moment now.

The exiled prince closed his eyes, waiting for the bite, hoping it would come sooner rather than later. He was convinced only death could form a way out of his pain now, and he strived to not feel it anymore. Not... anymore, not ever again.

Henry was light-headed, most likely from the blood loss. He saw before him the flier, fixating him on the ground with his claw, ready to attack – and his memory suddenly took him back. Back, a year ago, to when they had first met. He had held him in a position very similar to this, when Henry... Henry had asked him to...

“Well”, his voice was barely more than a whisper, Henry coughed before he was able to speak on, “... dying by the strike of a warrior who still knows honor is at the moment the best thing I could hope for...”

Another coughing fit overcame him, and he blindly reached up, desperate for one last time of claw-to-hand... of... the bond.

“I... I bound to... you”, he whispered, wanting to continue on, to recite more of the familiar words.

Our life and death are one... are one... We... are one... that was the last thought Henry could form in his mind, before his hand, that Thanatos hadn’t even acknowledged, fell back at his side and the black oblivion of unconsciousness enveloped him.

_ I bound to you,  _ echoed in Thanatos’ head, _I bound to... you._ Something within him resonated with the words, something, buried deep inside, something that... was almost certain it should recognize the man before him... The man... the... boy.

“Well... what are you waiting for? He is yours – kill him.” The voice sounded from behind him and Thanatos jolted around. Those eyes... those... those claws. He still felt the pain, he still heard his voice ringing in his head. Thanatos did not know how much time had passed since he had fallen down the waterfall... since... he... had taken him.

All he knew was that he was here for a reason... a reason the rat with the vicious eyes had given him... do it or suffer, he had threatened... and how hard could it really be, killing one target? It was not worth more suffering... it was not.

But when Thanatos looked back at the boy before him, his limp hand that he had extended to him – _I bound to you_ – the words rang louder now, the flier felt like there was something about to break the surface, a memory, a piece of knowledge, something that had been beaten and cut out of his mind by more agony than he knew he had the strength to endure.

_ Dying by the strike of a warrior who still knows honor... _ Something sounded so familiar about that phrase... like he had heard it before somewhere. Thanatos tried with all his might to remember, but then he felt the burning lashes of leather, like he was being struck this very moment. No, he gritted his teeth, he wanted to remember, he wanted to...

He had already opened his mouth, baring his bloodied teeth for a deadly bite, when his gaze fell upon the scar that tore the boy’s face.

_ Death... Death, what is the matter with my... eye? _ Thanatos froze. _Death... speak to me, please... what...?_

_ D... Death... Death... DEATH! _

It was like a glass barrier shattered inside Thanatos, like a mirror that had blocked his view on what had happened, and only allowed the view on the most recent experience of pain... was broken in two, releasing all that had been buried beneath.

Memories flooded his brain, memories of... his gaze fell upon the boy – he knew his name... “... H... Henry...?” Thanatos realized his voice was shaking. Dazed from the realization and the flood of impressions and memories that now swirled around in his head, he stared at the boy... then he saw the puddle of blood he was lying in, that had seeped out of his wounds.

Blind anger at whoever had injured him jolted through Thanatos’ body before more memories returned... he unbelievingly stared down at his own claw, covered in blood. Then, something in his head snapped.

The scream of agony, the flier sounded, filled the entire ginormous cave, it echoed from every wall, and many gnawers in the audience tried to shut their ears in discomfort. But not all of them.

When Longclaw saw, Thanatos had regained his senses, he leaped at the boy himself, claws bared. The flier didn’t hesitate – he let himself fall onto Henry, shielding him with his own body. Longclaw’s talons tore a gash in his body, but he felt only the seething pain inside his mind.

More of Longclaw’s followers saw their leader attack, and clustered around him now, trying to get to Henry themselves. Thanatos felt nothing, none of the countless cuts he was hit with, all he knew was that he needed to get Henry out.

In a last uproar, he spread his ginormous wings and turned, sweeping the gnawers closest to him off their feet. He gripped Henry’s arm with one claw, his sword with the second, and lifted off, right from amidst the angry gnawers.

Thanatos had no idea where he was going, his mind was still dazed and disoriented, he just took a random tunnel that was big enough to fit him and high in the air, so that the rats couldn’t follow him.

A river... the flier thought, he needed a river. He... Henry would need to drink... and see... and clean his wounds. He continued cluelessly traversing the tunnels for what felt like at least an hour until he finally saw the glow of a river in the distance.

No, Thanatos realized, that was not a river – it was a lake. It glowed with a faint orange and a waterfall fed it, from somewhere higher above them. A... waterfall. The flier realized he recognized the place... this was where...

The memories that now seeped back hurt, he remembered his own words... _If you let me go, you’ll never see me again!_

The memory burned like fire, Thanatos had almost been glad he had forgotten. No... no... Henry... Henry was here... he was safe... he was... motionlessly lying on the floor now, bleeding from his stomach. A bruise at the side of his head and a deep bitemark on his arm, as well as countless cuts added to it.

Thanatos’ head started spinning when he realized it had been him who had done all that to the boy... to... his... his bond. His bond... his... his reason to live.

He felt his chest tighten almost to the point where he couldn’t breathe anymore. Henry couldn’t die... he couldn’t... if he died, Thanatos knew he would immediately follow him. He would simply drop into the lake, never to surface again. It was so much easier than living with the fact he had killed his bond... with his own claws... his bond, that had screamed at him, threatened to let him fall when they had last spoken.

_ He abandoned you, _ Longclaw’s voice suddenly sounded in Thanatos’ head, _he is not going to come, Thanatos – he is leaving you to your fate, not that I can blame him. He is not deserving of your faith._ Angrily, Thanatos squinted his eyes. It wasn’t... it couldn’t be true. It... couldn’t.

He stared down at him and suddenly realized, if Henry died now, he would do so with his last memory of Thanatos being the moment he had thrust his claw into his stomach... panic gripped his heart at the thought, he wanted to cry, to scream, to shake Henry until he awoke, but he was too weak.

Thanatos simply collapsed beside him, feeling his own injuries, a thousand burning cuts, across his back. He meekly inched closer, burying his face in Henry’s side, shutting his eyes firmly. It was like the last half a year had not happened, like they had never drifted this far apart, like there had never been a wall between them. There... there had never been...

The boy was warm... he was still warm, his blood was now pouring into Thanatos’ fur, mixing with his own, but the flier didn’t care. He only pressed himself closer to Henry and slipped his claw into his limp hand, in an attempt to comfort the boy... and himself.

As long as his body still hadn’t grown cold with death he would not give up hope... he would... not.

The first thing Henry felt when he realized he was regaining consciousness, was something pressing against his side. His eye meekly opened and he saw black and white fur, drenched with the red of blood.

He realized it was Thanatos... Thanatos, who... Henry jolted back in fear immediately, painfully gripping his side and collapsing at a wall. Thanatos raised his head slowly, his eyes misted with pain and... something else. The aggression had left them now, Henry realized, but he still pressed himself against the wall in the anticipation of another attack.

The flier’s gaze when he had pierced him burned in his memory and Henry realized he was shaking. “D... don’t... hurt me... please...” His voice was quiet and weak, he felt blood pouring out of his side coloring his hand and clothes red.

Thanatos stared at him, the pain in his eyes was different now – “I... I will not, I swear...” His voice was clouded with grief and quiet.

“Y... you... you almost... killed me... why... did what I did truly make you want to... kill me?” His own voice didn’t sound any better. He was staring at the flier now, eye round of fear and pain.

Thanatos winched. “N... no... Henry, I was not myself, I...”, he sighed, “you have to believe I would never hurt you on purpose, I...” Before he could finish his sentence, Thanatos collapsed on the floor, panting heavily.

Henry’s mind reeled. For the first time, he had the opportunity to look at the flier more thoroughly, and what he saw terrified him. Countless scars, from cuts over whip marks and burns, covered his body, his back was entirely filled with every type of scar Henry could think of. “W... wha.. what? What... did that to you...?”

Thanatos raised his gaze. “They... he... he told me you wouldn’t come... That they had seen you happy and alive, already having forgotten I existed. I held on before... I did, you have to believe me... they did everything they could, but they did not break me... until... until he told me you were not coming for me...”

Hot pain and anger rose in Henry, at whoever it had been – “Who...?” Suddenly, he saw Longclaw’s maniacal grin when he told Henry the battle today would be special. “Longclaw...”

Thanatos made a sound that signaled approval. Henry’s head started spinning. Was that why he had wanted him to become a champion? To test how much he had already succeeded in brainwashing his flier? When had he even captured him? Henry had so many questions that his head started hurting and spinning, but all he said was – “He did not break you”, his voice was quiet but resolute. “You remembered. You did not... kill me.”

Thanatos rose a little. “You... you are right.”

All of their disagreements, the argument, the fight... how he had let Thanatos go... it all seemed so far away now, almost like it had all been a bad dream. Then, another memory hit him. “Why did you not kill me...”, he whispered, averting his eye, “you... you would not weep if I died... isn’t that what you said?”

Thanatos squinted his eyes in pain. “Henry, that was what I tried to convince myself of because I was scared I had... had grown too attached to you. I... I do not have much positive experience with getting attached. It was a lie... a lie I wish I never told. Not to Hamnet... not to myself.”

Henry stared at him and tears started filling his eyes. All his hopes from before the dam had broken and he had confronted Thanatos with what he had heard, returned, and he soon found himself shaking with crying.

“Y... you... you have to promise we’ll be honest from now on – I’ll do as well, I can not...” His voice broke from the tears and turned into a sob. He covered his eye with his hand but all it did was smear blood on his face.

Thanatos nodded. “I... I know.”

Then, Henry carefully extended a hand towards him. “W... we...?”

A wave of grief engulfed Thanatos. “I... I do not think I have the right to take your hand anymore... not after what I did... to you...”

“W... what?” Henry’s voice sounded so scared, so much like that of a child that had just been denied the hand of a loved one that Thanatos could barely remain in place.

“Henry... I am not... you... you are what matters, you know? It was my duty to protect you, to guide you, but... I never mattered as much as you. And if I can not even protect you from myself, how can I still presume I have any place at your side anymore?”

Henry had not moved, all he did was stare at his flier with the big, round eye of a kid.

“I am... lost. You have hope... do not make the same mistake I did and refuse to acknowledge your past. Then you will have hope. But I... there is no hope for me. There never was, not since more than eight years.” He lied down, burying his head between his wings, to not have to look at Henry’s helpless expression anymore.

When he heard a noise, Thanatos looked up. He saw the boy trying to rise from the wall – “Hey, don’t move, you will –”

Henry fell forward, letting out a short cry of pain. But he did not stop. He slowly dragged himself closer to Thanatos, until he could wrap his arms around his neck and bury his face in his fur. “That is not true”, he squeezed out between the sobs. “Death...” The name rang in Thanatos’ ears... “Death, you are... you and I, we... our lives... our life and death are one... we two...” Thanatos froze.

“You and I... are one... if I live you live... and if you die... I will die with you. That’s how bonds work... stupid.”

Thanatos’ breaths were shaky. “You... you truly mean that? Even after all that...”

The sound Henry made now was half-crying, half-laughing. “Just promise me one thing... I really just want this one thing from you... Promise me that you will never, never leave me again. No matter what happens, what I say or do to you, no matter if I happen to beg you to leave me... do not... do not leave me... please.”

Thanatos had no choice in this. He quietly muttered – “If that is what will make you happy... that is what I’ll promise.”

Henry extended his hand towards Thanatos’ claw again, and this time, the flier grabbed it without hesitation.


	15. Past

After a couple of minutes lying in silence, pressed against each other like they were scared this was all just a dream and that they would soon wake, apart once more, Thanatos told him to go clean his wounds and try to stop the bleeding.

Henry reluctantly moved away towards the lake and washed out the countless cuts and bruises, as well as the bite on his arm.

Thanatos was watching him, his gaze grim and regretful. “I don’t hold it against you... just you know.” Henry managed a crooked smile.

“Well, I do. Hold it against myself, that is. Had I just – AAGH!” Henry had approached him, attempting to clean the flier’s wounds too now.

“Don’t. I injured you as much as you did me – and I did it without being brainwashed.” Henry inspected Thanatos’ back closer for the first time, once more horrified by the number of scars on it now. For a second, he buried his face in the flier’s fur. “I’m so sorry I let them do that to you. I... I should have looked for you, should have made an effort to –”

But Thanatos scoffed. “You had no reason to believe I wanted to be found. I... I do not want to think of it... I just want to forget... everything, everything that happened.”

“The argument too?” Henry’s voice was muffled from the fur.

“All of it. We... I can honestly not believe we let it get this far. After all that we’ve been through...” Thanatos mumbled, closing his eyes.

“... after I’ve lost a bond to estrangement before...” Henry’s voice was quiet, yet the flier sensed the pain in it.

“It is in the past. And as much as we need to keep in mind, to learn from the mistakes we both made, it is still the past, and we should not dwell on it for too long.”

“Okay”, was all Henry answered, and it was more than enough.

“So, where do you want to go now?” Thanatos finally stretched his wings, after having spent nearly an hour tending to their injuries and just talking, about what Henry had done in the last four months, anecdotes from their past, plans for the future and just random things – like old times.

Henry sighed, his side still ached and he saw Thanatos was not in the best shape either. “Back to Kismet? At least for a while. It’s not far from here and safe, we can both let our injuries heal properly before we go back to the Dead Land – I am itching for adventure, honestly!”

The flier chuckled. “What about that rock – did you bring it to Teslas yet?”

Henry widened his eye – “I had almost forgotten, no I did not! The colony first, then.”

During the flight, Henry explained, his voice misted with the pain the memory brought with it, he had not been able to face anyone they knew, not after what had happened, and Thanatos nodded, understanding.

“They surely must ask themselves where we are and why we aren’t coming at this point – Curie will have missed you greatly. She’ll probably be all grown-up at this point, too!” Henry laughed, while Thanatos landed directly before Kismet’s cave.

The scarred rat asked not many questions, much like she hadn’t asked why Thanatos had been gone, back when she had saved Henry. Both of them were eternally grateful as neither wanted to explain the whole story at the moment, it was too painful of a memory. All they wanted was to just leave this entire episode behind them for good.

“We can never let dishonesty drive us apart like this again”, Henry said while chewing on one of the Firebeetles. They had not thought about bringing fish from the lake, so it was the only food available.

Thanatos was lying beside him, head pressed against his side, he had already filled his stomach with the beetles earlier. Kismet had left to occupy herself down in her caves where she kept her research and allowed Thanatos and Henry to stay for maybe another week or so until their injuries had healed.

“You are right. From now on, no more secrets... I promise.” The flier inched a little closer to him and Henry nodded. “No more secrets. I promise as well.”

“You... you are still burning with questions, concerning what I talked about with Hamnet, are you not?” Thanatos sounded hesitant now, and Henry thought just how painful it must be to talk about for him.

“You... you were there. In the Garden of the Hesperides... were you not?” Henry dug in his memory to help the flier. “Was that why you ran away? Like Hamnet?” In the very same moment, he remembered Luxa’s uncle mentioning Thanatos had left three years after him, and he decided to ask a different question first. “What... what was your life like, back then? Before you left? You knew Hamnet and Mareth... anyone else I know?”

Thanatos sighed, and Henry saw him smile sadly. “All of them. We were all... friends – Mareth, Hamnet, your father Jason, and Luxa’s mother, Hamnet’s twin sister, queen Judith. We... and our bonds, we were nigh-inseparable back then. Judith’s and Hamnet’s older sister Susannah and her husband York were acquainted with us too, though they were not truly part of our little gang.”

“Who... was Arya?” Henry had wanted to ask who his bond had been, but he had a feeling he had asked the question by asking for the name.

He felt Thanatos pushing his face into his side like he didn’t want Henry to see it. “She was... we were... bonds, as you probably guessed. She was... not royalty or anything, a soldier, like Mareth. They were cousins, actually. It had been him who had first introduced us.”

Henry was silent for a moment, trying to imagine it all. His father, all these people... and Thanatos. Young and careless and together, a gang of, how he presumed, troublemakers – and best friends.

“How...” Henry started kneading his hands, “what was she like? Arya, I mean.”

Thanatos chuckled. “Brave... and bold, always rushing head-first into the action. You... you two would have gotten along.” The thought made Henry grin, he lied down, leaning his head against Thanatos’ back.

“I admit”, the flier continued, “you are similar in a lot of ways... but then again, Arya had one of the biggest hearts of anyone I ever met. She was compassionate and caring – if she wasn’t currently kicking the ass of whoever made the mistake to mess with someone she cared about. And we all know you have the social sensitivity and empathy of a rock.”

They both laughed at that. “I would have liked to have met her”, Henry finally said.

After a moment of silence, Henry asked for the second name he had heard during Thanatos’ conversation with Hamnet. “What about... Persephone?”

The flier sighed. “She... she was Hamnet’s bond. And... she and I, we...” Henry noticed he hesitated, “we were... companions. Before... before all of that happened, we thought we would spend our lives together... have pups, grow old at each other’s side...”

Henry grinned. “I never realized you ever had... someone like that.”

Thanatos grunted. “Why? Didn’t take me for the type?” They both broke into laughter before the flier continued – “Actually, me neither, before I met her.”

“She must have been special”, the exiled prince smiled.

“She... I said Arya had one of the biggest hearts of anyone I had ever met – Persephone’s was the second. She... she was so kind, caring, understanding... always listened to everyone’s problems, never complaining, never judging and never demanding anything for herself. She... she deserved the world, you know? And what she got, was...” Thanatos interrupted himself, his voice breaking away.

Henry’s head was spinning. “She died in the Garden...” He remembered Ripred saying Hamnet’s bond had died that day – and Thanatos retreating at the mention of her. It all made sense now.

“She... I wanted to save her, but...” The flier’s voice was muffled with sadness now, “Arya had been in peril, and Hamnet assured me he would reach her. I... I dove for Arya, and he... he never got to Persephone.”

Henry turned around and wrapped his arms around Thanatos. He could feel his body trembling with pain, and at that moment, all Henry wanted was to alleviate that pain as much as he could.

The flier resumed speaking after a short silence, like he just wanted to get everything off his chest now. “After Persephone and my mother both died in the Garden and Hamnet left, a couple weeks later, Arya was the only reason that held me in civilization. I moved to live in Regalia with her, from the flier’s land, after that, and we kept each other’s sorrow at bay, for the next three years.”

“What about your father?” Henry asked, “Or any other relatives?”

“Never had any, at least not any close ones”, Thanatos replied. “My father died shortly after I was born, I have only faint memories of him.” Henry remained silent, he felt the flier’s loneliness and pain like it was his own now.

“Or gang was disassembled”, Thanatos continued, “Mareth and Arya remained close, but your father and Judith grew more distant. The loss of Hamnet, Persephone, and that of your father’s bond Hecate had done irreversible damage to all of us.”

Henry knew that this next part would be as hard to talk about as the previous, if not harder. “What... what happened to her? Arya, I mean.”

He felt the flier tense up. “She... we... we grew reckless. Some three years after the incident at the Garden, the humans had trouble with one of Gorger’s general specifically, who was rumored to even be the king’s right-hand-man. Many believe he would be his successor to the throne, too. Though, if I’m informed correctly, Gorger banished him about five years ago, for he had tried to assassinate him, apparently not willing to wait any longer for the crown.”

Henry listened carefully, arms still wrapped around his flier, attempting to provide as much comfort and reassuring he was not alone, as possible.

“That general, you know him”, said Thanatos then, to Henry’s surprise.

“Who...” Suddenly, the exiled prince saw the flier’s shocked face when he had seen Longclaw in the ice caves for the first time, and remembered how the rat had recognized him, even mentioned a “girl”. Had he meant... Arya? Had he been the one who... “Wait...”

“Yes, it was your good friend Longclaw, the same who kidnapped me at the lake. He...” Thanatos chuckled dryly, “is something of an old friend.” His voice was dripping with sarcasm.

“He killed... Arya? And he kidnapped you... before pining us against each other, most likely on purpose?” Henry pondered for a moment. “What in the world did you do to anger him so much he bore the grudge for over eight years?”

“I...” Thanatos sighed. “Arya and I, we were sent into battle against him back then. We were losing, but then we used a trick to lure his army to a cliff. We caused the floor to collapse and they all fell to their death. All, except for Longclaw.”

An image of a similar scene flashed in Henry’s mind... the floor had collapsed on an army of rats, back when he had fallen... _Go, go, go, go. Stand with your friends –_ The memory of Ripred’s voice, sharp as a blade – the gnawer pushing him towards Gorger until he had tripped and fallen...

Angrily Henry shut his eyes. He did not want to remember that night, and yet Thanatos noticed his breaths were shaky now. “It was what happened when you fell too, wasn’t it? I do not remember much from back then, but I do remember that. That, and your voice, screaming for your bond... who didn’t come.”

Henry nodded, face still buried in the flier’s fur. “What... what did he do to Arya?”

“We...” Thanatos sighed, “I made the mistake to brag to him, hanging from a ledge, barely able to move, how we had defeated him. Arya had wanted to send him flying to his death, but I said... I said it was not necessary anymore, he would surely fall on his own soon.” His voice was pained and Henry realized saying that was one of the biggest regrets Thanatos must be harboring.

“Turned out he was stronger than we had anticipated. A few weeks later he decided to have his revenge... He set a trap, and Arya and I walked right in.”

An uneasy feeling started to rise in Henry’s chest and he wrapped his arms around Thanatos even tighter.

“He... he and his henchmen overpowered us. He...” The flier was noticeably shaking now, “They restrained me in place, then Longclaw dragged Arya off my back. He said... he said I would watch her die like he had watched his men die because of us.”

Henry was unable to speak, all he could do was listen in horror.

“He... he dragged her over to a ledge and... and pushed her down. She... she fought him valiantly but she... she was not strong enough and I...” Thanatos was stuttering now, “I... I was not either. I tried to free myself from the rats’ grasp, I really did – I nearly dislocated my wing in an attempt to break free, but I couldn’t... I couldn’t... they were four rats holding me and they were... stronger...”

Henry heard him take a breath, trembling from distress and trauma. “I did wiggle free at last – Longclaw tried to slash at me, he... he is who I have to thank for the scar on my face.”

Henry eyed the flier from the corner of his eye. The scar told of a terrible injury, it tore Thanatos’ face in half in an angry gash, not unlike Ripred’s scar.

“I... I dove after Arya as soon as I was free, but... it was too late. All I could do was watch her body shatter at the bottom of the cliff.” Thanatos was heaving now, “I... I can still hear her screaming my name in my dreams. It will haunt me until I die... I... I could not return to Regalia after that. Longclaw tried to kill me when I came back up, but I would not give him the satisfaction. I fought back and – that scar on his chest, it... it was me who made it. I thought the wound would do him in for good, but apparently, he is not as easy to kill as all of us would like.”

Henry remembered the gash across Longclaw’s chest all too well. His head was spinning now and he pressed his face into Thanatos’ fur to suppress his own urge to cry, that overcame him, all of a sudden. “I... I am so... sorry, I did not...”

“You could not have known. It’s... it’s alright.” Thanatos attempted to sound comforting while Henry knew it was the flier who needed comfort more.

“That is... why you saved me... is it not?” The realization suddenly hit Henry. “It... you saw... her, not me...”

“You... you were falling, screaming for your bond who had abandoned you. It was like...” Thanatos hesitated, “It was like my second chance. My chance to save the one falling. I did not care about who you were or what you had done, but I could not watch another fall to their death like she had before my eyes.”

They lied, nestled together, for what felt like an eternity. Henry’s thoughts were reeling, he was still trying to wrap his head around the story Thanatos had told him. It made perfect sense why he had hesitated to tell it before, and Henry felt bad now, for having pressured him.

“You told Hamnet because... because he understood your grief.” Henry finally spoke, face still buried in Thanatos’ fur.

“We mourn the same people. And we both left for the same reason. To... die.” Thanatos replied. “I knew I could never go back and face everyone back in Regalia. I... I was not strong enough to bear the news of Arya’s death. I knew it was a cowardly move, but I... I couldn’t.”

“No, I understand.” Henry thought about how he himself hadn’t been able to face the nibblers after Thanatos had left.

“I contemplated killing myself then and there”, the flier continued, “I was really close to doing it, but then... I just couldn’t bring myself to. I thought nothing could be a better punishment for my own failure then what is custom for betraying your bond... exile. So I decided to stay... in the Dead Land and wait for something to finally put me out of my misery. Because that was what I was doing... for seven years, until you came along. Running away from my past and hiding from my own shame.”

“Nothing left to live for, yet no reason to die either”, Henry mumbled, remembering the numbness that had engulfed him for four months.

Thanatos made a surprised noise and Henry, after a moment of hesitation, described the feelings he had had to deal with over the course of the last months.

“You tasted what it was like, then. I wish you wouldn’t have had to, but... that was it, that was what it felt like. I was... essentially dead inside, just waiting for my life to end. No fears, no desires, no attachments... no hope. And then... then you came. And you... you needed me. Suddenly... suddenly there was... something to live for again.”

Henry smiled. “I’m glad I was able to save you as much as you saved me then. But please do not assume you are worth any less than me.” He remembered what Thanatos had said when he had refused to take his hand at the lake. “You are not lost.”

For the first time, Henry let go of Thanatos and sat up, looking directly at him. “You are worth as much as I am, and as long as there is hope for me, there is hope for you. You’ve been through terrible things, there is no denying that, but look at you now – you have friends, a new bond... you were lost, but you were also found. If you need me to give you hope, that’s what I will do. It’s what bonds are for.”

Rarely ever Henry had experienced the flier speechless, but now was one of those moments. “Y... you... you truly believe that?”

Henry had a feeling this was the first time in eight years that Thanatos had had hope not just for Henry, but also himself.

“Remember my words, and whenever you despair, think of them. I refuse to lose you like I lost everything else that I ever held dear, and I will do anything in my power to be there for you. Always. You are... my best friend, my brother... and no matter what life throws at us, we’ll pull through – and we’ll do it together.” Henry was, for the first time in forever, absolutely certain about his words.

Thanatos hesitated, then he smiled. “I’ll hold you to that, then, baby brother.” He received a hefty nudge in the side for that, but in the end, they both ended on the floor, laughing their hides off.

After they had calmed down, Henry lied, head against Thanatos’ back, again. Then, for the first time, the flier asked for Henry’s own story. The exiled prince remembered he had heard bits and pieces of it from the rats, soon after he had saved him, but he realized as little as Thanatos had talked about his past, Henry had about his own.

He told the flier everything. From his panic attacks after his parents had died, over the difficulties of growing up without them, about his family – Luxa and Nerissa – and his former bond Ares, finally moving to his first encounter with Tonguetwist and how she had distorted his views on the rats and their relationship with the humans.

He then talked about his own doubts, but finally, the decision he had made to side with Gorger, and how the king had thanked him for it.

“I know my story is not nearly as sad as yours, as I dug my own grave by siding with the rats, and in truth, you should not feel any sympathy for me because of it – but I want you to know nonetheless. Judge me if you like, tell me I was stupid and a traitor who deserved what he got – I really do not care. I just... want you to know.” Henry realized his eyes had filled with tears over the course of saying that.

Thanatos was silent for a moment. “Do not say that, please do not. It is true that what you did was wrong, but you did not deserve what you got. Not by a long shot. Because, as bad as it was, the most important thing is, you regret it – and you actively seek a way to make up for it. In your own eyes as much as in the eyes of the people you betrayed, which is so much more than anything I ever did over the course of the seven years before I met you.”

Henry bit his lip. “It’s not like it matters though. They – especially Luxa – will never forgive me. All I can hope is, for them to never find out I’m even... alive.” A single tear escaped his eye and Henry wiped it away angrily. He did not want to cry now, not because of something so... pointless.

“The thing with betrayal is... the closer the people that betray us are to us, the more it hurts... and the more difficult it is to forgive.” Thanatos’ voice was soothing. “But do not write anything off. The future is unknown... who knows what it holds. After all, from what I remember Luxa herself condemned the Death Rider to leave, back on the waterway, while seeking his help in the jungle. If she can come around to accepting an unknown outcast, who says there is no hope for Henry?”

The exiled prince remained silent. In truth, he had told himself there was no hope because he did not want to believe and then be disappointed.

“And besides”, Thanatos continued, “Mistakes are always good for a lesson. And imagine what would have happened if you hadn’t made this particular one – you would have continued locking yourself in your own golden cage, blind to the world, with a bond you did not trust anymore. You would never have learned any of the things exile taught you, I mean, look at yourself now – you have achieved incredible things, have you not? You learned to see in the dark, to speak another tongue, to survive on your own... you even became one of the strongest fighters most likely ever known to the humans... and you have...”, he hesitated, unsure whether he should say this last thing, “... you have found me... for what it’s worth. And if you hadn’t found me... I... I would most likely be dead now.”

Thanatos’ words were followed by a long silence in which Henry contemplated what he had said, and his own future. He knew he would always do everything he could... if there even was anything... to help Luxa and the others, and possibly one day win their trust back.

Anything.

About an hour later, Kismet poked her head into the cave, telling them she had been out fishing and asking if they wanted any. The three of them ended up around a campfire together, sharing a meal of grilled fish, around ten minutes later.

Henry was chewing on a piece, thinking about how much better it was then the Firebeetles, and staring at Thanatos’ scar that split his face, and the story his bond had told him today.

“You know what... Longclaw needs to be taught a lesson.” He raised his voice finally and both Thanatos and Kismet looked at him, surprised.

“After what he did to Arya... and to you, over the last four months... I can not believe you have not sought out and tried to kill him yet yourself.”

“Longclaw? Is he still breathing?” Kismet’s voice sounded hoarse, “Well, someone urgently needs to fix that.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying!” Henry exclaimed. “We can not simply let him walk away after having caused so much misery. Don’t you agree?”

Henry saw in Thanatos’ face that he had long given up on ever getting back at Longclaw. “You... you would do that... for me?”

Henry suppressed the urge to roll his eye. “Did you not listen to what I told you earlier? I’d go to the ends of the earth and back for you. And besides, I have my own reasons to hate him. He pinned us against each other on purpose – I am certain of it. He probably only suggested I should become a champion to have me face you eventually.”

Kismet’s eyes showed curiosity, and, after exchanging a glance with Thanatos, Henry finally told her how he had met the flier in the arena, under Longclaw’s control, and how they had almost killed each other.

She shook her head. “The bastard needs to finally die. If you go and kill him, you’d be doing the world a huge favor. Just... promise me you’ll make it painful, kay?”

Thanatos and Henry exchanged glances again. “If you are willing to do this, I am with you”, the flier finally said, and Henry threw him a crooked smile. “Let’s go get him.”


	16. Confrontation

“And you’re sure you know where you’re going?” Kismet was standing in the entrance of her cave and watching Thanatos and Henry as they got ready to leave.

About two weeks had passed since they had arrived and disclosed they wanted to go hunt for Longclaw, and in those weeks, Kismet had made it her personal goal to prepare them as well as she could for the task.

Thanatos and Henry had taken to training together, and – under Kismet’s guidance – their ability to fight as a team had improved considerably. Especially when it came to predicting and sensing the other’s intentions without losing precious time by having to say them out loud.

Multiple times Henry had considered bringing up his new invention idea to Thanatos, but every time he had hesitated, thinking he should first show it to Teslas and talk to the flier afterward, together. It wasn’t like he had the materials or means to make it right now anyway. The promise of no secrets gnawed at him, but he kept telling himself he would tell Thanatos soon, just not now – and not without support. The risk of the flier not even finishing listening and yelling at Henry for being “disrespectful” was much too high and he had no desire to deal with any of that at the moment.

Kismet had also spent some time telling them more about Longclaw himself, apparently, the two had known each other a long time ago, and she spent most evenings telling them stories she remembered from their past.

That and, lessons in rat tongue – she had had offered to teach Henry her language back when he first arrived, but he had dismissed it as “not why he was here”. When she brought up it could be useful when spying on him though, Henry had reluctantly agreed.

Rat turned out similar enough to nibbler, so that he found himself picking it up fairly quickly. At the end of the two weeks, he understood everything and was able to communicate back well enough that Kismet was pleased.

Now, both Henry’s and Thanatos’ injuries were healed to the point where they were confident enough to seek actual battle again. They wanted to see the nibblers before starting their hunt for Longclaw, but had decided to go back into the ice caves first. They lied on the way and they hoped to pick up a trail to follow later, as the leader of the gnawers hadn’t been to his own arena ever since Thanatos had fled, according to Dustfur.

When they had told Kismet what they’d witnessed the rats doing down there, during their first visit, she had expressed great worry. After fetching a map of the Underland – which she had allowed Henry to keep after a little toing and froing, it was now safely stored in his waterproof container – she had asked where exactly they thought that cave had been.

Turned out it had been closer to Regalia than they had first believed, and both the flier and the exiled prince had agreed they wouldn’t just seek Longclaw’s trail when going back, but also try to find out what exactly he had been doing down there, so close to the human city.

“We are ready”, Henry answered in rat, grinning at Kismet, standing at the entrance to her cave. She grinned back. “Do not forget your training, boy – and do not let that bastard kick your ass. He does not deserve the satisfaction.”

“We know”, Thanatos responded while his bond was in the process of filling the bags he was wearing with supplies.

“And never make the mistake to believe yourself invincible!” Kismet shouted after a short period of silence and Henry, after turning away from her, rolled his eyes. “I won’t, promise.”

“You won’t promise – or you promise you won’t?” She asked and the exiled prince grinned. “PICK ONE!”

“That’s not now that works, boy!” Henry only laughed at her annoyed tone.

“And do not forget you are going to a place with the name “ice caves” – you have packed your second coat, haven’t you?”

Henry groaned. “Look”, he turned around to her, “I appreciate the advice, I really do – but I can take care of myself now.” He thought back to how helpless he had felt, on the crawler island, after losing his eye, and that his prediction had turned out correct – this second rock bottom hadn’t kept him down for long either.

“And who do you have to thank for that?”, she snarled, and Henry laughed – “Myself, of course!”

He felt Thanatos hit him with one of his claws, and continued, still chuckling – “and you, I’m not forgetting you, of course, I am not.”

“As you shouldn’t”, Kismet grinned.

Henry stared at the scarred gnawer who had become so familiar over the course of the last... what? Seven, eight months? “I’ll be fine. I’m a survivor, remember? You said that yourself! As well as how I was totally fine on my own, remember – you told it to my face I was good without your help, and that I should leave you alone – for the sake of your sweet solitude!”

They both laughed and Henry was certain she had vivid memories of their first encounter like he did. He had been so intimidated back then, yet determined to show her he was worthy. And now he possessed the same abilities that had impressed him so much, back then.

“And still a self-centered, conceited brat. But yes... you are a survivor – pup. As little as I want to admit this... you were a worthy student, Henry of Regalia. I do not regret taking you in”, she snarled. “Never forget that, you hear?”

“I won’t forget it. And I won’t forget you either.” Henry smiled. A worthy student – this was most likely the biggest compliment he could ever expect from her.

“We both won’t!” Thanatos called, and Henry’s smile widened while mounting up, after having finished packing – “We’ll see each other again someday, surely. And we’ll make sure to tell your sweetheart Ripred that he is on your mind always, when we see him again!”

Kismet growled angrily – “DO NOT DARE SAY ANYTHING OF THE SORT! We – Ripred and I were NEVER ANYTHING LIKE THAT!”

“Well, if you say so...” Henry pondered for a second. He eyed her and suddenly realized he still knew next to nothing about her past – her connection to Ripred, to the Garden of the Hesperides, if she was indeed related to the former champion Sizzleblood, and why she lived out here, almost as far away from the rats’ land as possible. Yet he had a feeling he would have plenty of opportunities to find out in the future. 

In a fit of affection towards Kismet, who had become such a close friend over the course of the last half a year, Henry slid off Thanatos’ back again and wrapped his arms around her for a hug, one last time.

He had managed to catch her by surprise again, and when she angrily hissed at him, screaming “I TOLD YOU NOT TO DO THAT!” He was already in a safe distance, and then on the flier’s back.

“AND I TOLD YOU WE’LL SEE ABOUT THAT!” Henry called, still grinning, while Thanatos already lifted off.

“RUN LIKE THE RIVER, KISMET!” He screamed, and when he already thought he wouldn’t get any response again, he finally heard her call – “Fly you high, pup!”

Thanatos started chuckling and Henry flicked at his ear. “Do not even start. Do. Not.”

This time they left Kismet’s lair following a different way than the Path of Styx, which only led to the citadel and the Dead Land behind it, and was not their destination now. It took them around half a day to get back to where they had found Longclaw and his followers last time. The cave they had flooded back then, stood half underwater now, and not a single rat was in view.

Henry and Thanatos decided to rest a little on top of a ledge, that lied above water level, eat, and finally traverse through the wall of ice the gnawers had broken through last time. It was a little awkward, for both of them, to be here again – here, where their argument had started.

“I’m sorry for everything I said...”, Henry muttered, but the flier shushed him. “It was me who called you a traitor again. Worse, I made you believe I didn’t trust you because of it. Do not even for a second think there is even an ounce of truth in that.”

Henry threw him a glance. “It’s not like I could actually blame you, were it true, though.”

“Henry stop – don’t say things like that. We both know I do trust you, as I hope you trust me. I... I should be ashamed for claiming I meant what I told Hamnet. It was lies, all of it, I hope you can forgive me.”

“Hey”, Henry threw him a smile, “of course I trust you. And... no big deal, okay? I shouldn’t have made as much of a drama out of it as I did either. Especially now that I know you had a good reason hesitating to talk about it.”

They sat in comfortable silence for a while after that, eating their meal and watching the light of the torch flicker on the walls around them.

“Ready to go?” Thanatos asked after presumably half an hour and Henry nodded. “Let’s find out what’s going on here. And then, to the nibblers. I can not wait for Teslas to see this rock finally.” And ask him about my new invention idea, Henry thought – and smiled.

They flew through the broken wall of ice into new territory, Henry had extinguished the torch to not give away their position and only their echolocation guided them on their way through the icy tunnels now.

The sound of rushing water, that was still flooding the caves they traversed, was their constant companion, and loud enough to allow Henry to perceive his surroundings fairly well.

When they first heard living creatures, they had already flown for around an hour. Both Henry and Thanatos recognized the noises and voices of rats and the flier immediately dove into the shade of the ceiling to avoid being spotted. He soon landed on a ledge near the top of the cave from where they had a decent view on the three rats below.

“Do you really think they will come? After we nearly drowned them last time?” One of them sounded, they were standing on a narrow ledge that led along the wall of the cave, above water, and Henry thought they must be talking about him and Thanatos.

“You mean after Longclaw forced us to nearly drown ourselves with them?” A different voice sounded, this one was slightly higher pitched and Henry suspected it was a female. “The guy is utterly crazy if you ask me.”

“Ohhh but he knows what he is doing... determined men are so my type!” An even higher-pitched voice sounded, quickly followed by a shriek. Apparently one of the other rats had punched her.

“Get a grip, Silverspine, that is not why we are following him!” The other female sounded again. “Speak for yourself”, Silverspine answered and the other two growled at her.

“Arrghh, if I could just SMELL properly among all this ice – it is too watery, too... all-consuming... I swear I wouldn’t be able to tell if they were flying above our heads this moment!”, the male groaned after a short silence. “And besides, why are we supposed to care if they come or not – quite the opposite. If they stay away, we’ll have a nice, calm day out here, so be happy!”

Thanatos and Henry exchanged glances and grinned. Good for you, the exiled prince thought. That moment, he wished he had a way to communicate with Thanatos without speaking – and drawing the attention of the rats. Maybe I should work something out for that soon, Henry thought.

For the time being, he leaned over to the flier and whispered in his ear, as quietly as he could – “We should leave them unharmed and follow them when they go back to report to Longclaw.” Thanatos nodded, and they stayed on their ledge, trying not to die of boredom while listening to the rats below bickering with each other.

After more than three hours of scouting, the guards finally left their post to go back to their leader. Not a single piece of useful information had the two spies gathered from their conversations, only nonsensical chitchat.

Henry and Thanatos followed them through the icy caves for maybe ten minutes, always staying as close to the ceiling as they could. Though the rats were so occupied with their own conversation that Henry pondered whether they would even take notice of them if they decided to fly directly before their noses.

Finally, they entered some sort of base camp, located in a cave with only a single entrance. One side of it was bordered by a steep cliff that led into what sounded like rushing water.

The flier and human decided to not try their luck with the heavily guarded tunnel entry but find a way around to enter from the side with the cliff. It took them another half an hour but finally, Thanatos found his way around to that side.

There was but one problem – the walls in the cave were steep and smooth, no ledges to land on. Luckily it was fairly high and the ceiling provided shadow to hide in, but Thanatos could not stay up in the air forever without landing, and the risk of being spotted was high.

They had just circled around the cave once, in search of a landing spot, when they realized they had pushed their luck too much. As soon as the first rat spotted them and screamed “INTRUDERS!”, they were lost.

Every single rat in the cave was at their tail immediately, Thanatos tried to escape the way they came, but one of the rats was clever enough to claw his way up the icy wall maybe ten feet and jump at them from there. The flier screamed when the rat’s claws dug into his leg and he lost altitude, being dragged down by the additional weight, immediately.

As soon as they were within the rats’ jumping height, they were instantly swarmed from all sides. Henry tried fighting them off with his sword but soon, a whipping tail knocked it out of his hand and multiple rats dragged him off Thanatos’ back.

He heard his flier’s screams – five rats were necessary to hold him in place, they tore at his wings until they almost dislocated and one of them sliced a huge gash into his chest. The ice around them soon started turning red from Thanatos’ blood.

Henry was being restrained by two rats and even though he struggled, kicked and screamed at them, his attempts at breaking free were futile. They were much stronger than he, and all Henry could do was helplessly watch them torment his flier.

One of the rats, that was holding him, slashed across his cheek and Henry felt two claw marks on his face burning like fire. It did nothing to silence him though, his screaming only intensified, until one of the rats apparently had enough. He felt something heavy hit him over the head and moments later everything went black.

The first thing Henry noticed when he came to was a voice – one that sounded very familiar. At first, he was too dazed to understand words, but when he opened his eyes, he instantly recognized the brown fur and the huge scar across the chest of the gnawer in front of him.

“Look who we have here now. It’s good to see you – champion... or is it perhaps inappropriate to call you that, as you are my prisoner now?” Longclaw sounded hoarse laughter and Henry tried to move his head in search of Thanatos.

“In case you are looking for your flier, he is over there. You know, you should really have finished him off in the arena when you had the chance. That would have been so much more merciful than what I am planning to do to him now.”

Henry coughed, trying to make the world around him stop spinning. When his vision became clearer again, the scene before him, illuminated by the faint glow of the water and supplemented by his echolocation, filled him with utter horror.

Thanatos was still held in place by three of Longclaw’s followers, even if Henry was certain in his current state, one would be enough too. He was lying on his stomach, amber eyes half-closed and misted with pain. Countless fresh gashes covered his back and stomach, the biggest one almost the length of Henry’s arm. It bled heavily and at this point, the flier was lying in a puddle of his own blood.

His breaths were shallow and shaky and one of his wings was lying on the floor, part of it bent in an unnatural direction – clearly broken. The tissue around that part was torn, Henry saw claw marks in the formerly beautiful silky black material the wings were made of.

“What have YOU DONE TO HIM?!” Henry screamed, trying to get up from where he was lying, but one of the rats was sitting on him and he couldn’t move an inch. He desperately reached out to Thanatos, trying to at least let him know he was still here, and the flier slightly raised one of his claws, pointing it in his direction, to signal he had understood.

“Aww... how touching. Sadly, I can not let this little reunion last for much longer.” Longclaw’s voice was cold as ice.

“What... what has he ever done to you?” Henry tried to sound angry, but with the rat on his back, he had trouble even breathing, let alone talking, and the words he managed to squeeze out now were barely audible.

Longclaw hissed. “What has he... did he not tell you?”

“He told me he defeated you in battle... using a trick to make the floor collapse.” Henry desperately gasped for air.

“Kettle, let him breathe, will you? He still has a purpose to serve”, Longclaw's voice sounded annoyed and Henry felt the rat on his back move away, keeping a paw on him though.

The exiled prince caught his breath for the first time, and after his coughing fit had ended, Longclaw started talking again. “He made the floor collapse... oh he sure did, he told you that. But did he also tell you –” The leader of the gnawers was now standing directly in front of Henry, and grabbed onto the back of his vest, “that he killed my son – with his own bloody claws? He would not have fallen unless your precious flier over there hadn’t grabbed and tossed him down!”

Henry threw Thanatos a glance, from what he saw the flier looked as surprised as the exiled prince. “I’m sure he did not do it on purpose! He probably had no idea who the rats he killed were!” Henry defended him, and suddenly the flier himself spoke up, his voice hoarse and strained from pain. “I did not... he was your...”

“Ohh, of course, you did not –”, his voice was dripping with sarcasm, “He was barely more than a pup! Not much different from you”, he glanced at Henry, “and like I watched my son die, he will watch you die now.”

Panic gripped Henry’s throat. The rat was holding him up now, his feet dangling over the floor. “Was it not enough TO KILL ARYA?!” Henry screamed, trying to dig his nails into the paw that was holding him.

“The girl? The girl was a start – but I will not rest until the flier is broken beyond repair, you hear? I attempted to break him myself, but then you... YOU undid all the work I had done on him. Apparently, his connection to you is keeping him sane, so I will have to kill you first. Nothing personal, kid, really – you were a fine champion actually, it’ll be a shame to lose you. I doubt anyone will ever draw the crowds to my arena like you have... but oh well, you do what you have to do.”

Henry glanced at Thanatos, naked fear and desperation now shone in his eyes as he helplessly watched Longclaw carry Henry over to the cliff.

“First, I’ll have my revenge on the flier, and then – then I’ll decimate your entire species. Once I’ve taken care of that, the gnawers will pronounce me king, like they should have so long ago, not that weakling Gorger!”

“What... what are you talking about?” Henry furrowed his brows as well as he could, in Longclaw’s grip.

“Oh well, as you are about to die anyway, you might as well know.” He grinned, “These tunnels here lead right up to the river that feeds your city with water, and the canalization system you humans dug. If we tear down a few more walls and flood it with the water from the waterway – your entire city will be submerged, making you easy prey for an attacking army of gnawers. And my followers here are ready as ever to strike.”

Henry froze in shock – that... that was what they were doing! They planned on flooding Regalia. A hundred thoughts reeled in his mind at once, he had to break away from Longclaw, free Thanatos, get out of here and find a way to warn the humans – as quickly as he could. But then he glanced over to his flier and realized it was futile anyway – even if he could magically make the rats on top of him disappear, Thanatos would never be able to fly in this state.

Longclaw laughed, holding Henry even higher. He was now hanging maybe three feet above the floor and slowly but surely the leader of the gnawers was inching closer to the cliff that he sought to throw him down from.

Henry glanced down and shuddered. The foaming water below was over a hundred feet away and icebergs and spikes pierced the surface, waiting to impale him on impact.

“Look closely now, flier – this is the last you will see of the boy, after all!” Longclaw mocked, holding Henry over the edge now.

The exiled prince glanced back at Thanatos, saw the desperation in his eyes and suddenly knew he could not allow the rat to do this. Panic gripped his heart when he realized this was going to be a repeat of Arya’s death. Thanatos restrained in place, forced to watch his bond being flung off a cliff.

Henry’s breaths were shaky, his mind reeling – he could not let his flier go through the same pain again, even if he himself ended up surviving the fall. He could not... let that happen. He could not.

_ Do not let that bastard kick your ass. He does not deserve the satisfaction.  _ Henry heard Kismet’s voice in his head and gritted his teeth. I have to find a way to make him release his grip, he thought, but first, he has to move away from the cliff.

Henry’s mind flew back to his training with Kismet, had she truly never mentioned something that could help him now?

Longclaw now swung him over solid ground again, and Henry realized he would not get a better chance. He used the momentum from the motion to ram his foot into Longclaw’s armpit. _Go for the joints,_ Kismet’s voice rang in his ears, _if you can not reach the face._

The leader of the rats let out a high-pitched scream of pain and let go off Henry. His claws tore the back of his vest but the exiled prince didn’t care. As soon as he hit the floor, he rolled off towards his sword and backpack, that were lying maybe ten feet away. But Longclaw’s companions didn’t have the intention to stand idly and let him escape.

He saw two of the ones, who had held Thanatos in place, zoom in on him immediately, most likely to drag him over to the flier and hold them together, but then their attention was diverted by something.

Henry closed his hand around the handle of his sword when he heard a desperate scream that – if he had heard correctly – sounded like... Thanatos. His head jolted around only to watch in helpless shock how the flier, having mobilized his last strength, most likely, leaped up, breaking free from the last gnawer who held him. But instead of flying at Henry, he closed in on Longclaw, who had his attention focused on the escaped exiled prince, and reacted too slowly when the flier reached him.

Thanatos rammed his head into Longclaw’s side and the gnawer stood so close to the cliff, that it was enough to send him flying over the edge. But Longclaw was not defeated so easily, Henry watched how he dug a claw into Thanatos’ foot, in a desperate attempt to at least take the flier with him as he fell.

Like in slow motion Henry saw the rat drag his bond over the edge of the cliff until they both disappeared out of view. The exiled prince screamed and leaped up, but when he reached the edge, all he could do was watch the two plummet into the foaming waves.

Henry knew what he had to do the moment he saw Thanatos’ head disappear in the water. He gripped the straps of his backpack firmly, having no time to sheath his sword, before leaping over the edge after them, escaping the claws of countless rats that had already extended in his direction, threatening to grab him, into the dark and violently roaring water beneath.

Henry was an expert swimmer, but now he felt like a paper boat in a violent, ice-cold stream when he hit the water. His head was bobbing up and down and he could barely orientate himself. His sword, still in his right hand, was not helping either, the metal was heavy and Henry almost let it go, before he realized he could use it to keep himself over the water.

With as much force as his weakened and disoriented state had left him, he thrust the blade into the wall of ice, above his head. He gripped the handle with both hands when he realized it was firmly stuck, and lifted himself as far out of the water as he could, taking a deep breath.

Then, the blade moved. Henry almost let go of the handle in shock, when he realized it was not the sword itself that had given way – it was the wall. He looked up and saw that, when thrusting the blade into the ice, he had created a split, that now grew into a massive crack. The wall sounded a loud creak when more splits appeared. Henry realized in shock that the ice was about to collapse. From above his head, he heard the screams of rats now, and thought the cave they had had their camp in must be in the process of falling apart now.

With the last of his strength, he freed his sword from the ice, which had been the last straw. A huge piece of ice broke away from the wall and fell into the water behind him, causing a flood that swamped Henry out of the cave entirely.

He was violently thrown around by the current and he feared the icy water would make him pass out and drown when he was suddenly swamped out into a huge cave, entirely filled with water.

Henry was about to lose consciousness from the cold, when a pleasantly warm current suddenly engulfed him, carrying him forward. He meekly tried to swim and keep his head above water, when he suddenly heard noise, somewhere in front of him.

Henry tried his best to paddle towards the sound without dropping his sword and saw the bobbing head of Longclaw and... Thanatos. The flier was barely conscious, and the gnawer tried to hold on to him in order to not drown. Henry used the current to propel himself towards the two, when he reached them, he raised his sword, thrusting it into Longclaw’s side.

The rat cried in pain and released the flier, Henry opened his arms when he was about to collide with Thanatos, and wrapped them around his neck, as soon as he reached him.

The flier’s eyes were closed, his lids fluttered when Henry grabbed onto him, but they did not open. Henry tried keeping them above water with one hand, the other firmly holding Thanatos and his sword, but had the current not been as strong as it was, he would not have made it.

In the distance, he saw Longclaw grabbing hold of a floating piece of ice that was carried into a different direction, he could hear the rat’s curses as he floated away from them. They would have to deal with him another day, Henry meekly thought.

Then, another loud cracking sound tore the silence and a second tidal wave hit Henry and Thanatos, carrying them further away from where they had come from. The exiled prince barely realized the rest of the ice cave must have collapsed and caused the wave before all his attention was taken up with keeping himself and his flier above water again.

We must surely be out in the waterway now, Henry thought, catching a glimpse at the ginormous cave they were in – and the endless seeming water all around them. The same warm current as before still flowed around them, and all Henry could really do was hold on to Thanatos and let it carry them.

The exiled prince had no idea how long he had drifted through the waterway, clinging to the limp body of Thanatos. They were carried along and kept above water by the current, if Henry were to guess, he’d say around an hour passed, before he finally saw land.

When he could feel ground beneath his feet again at last, and they were carried through a river-like passageway further into the mainland, before finally being washed up on a rocky shore, Henry felt he had not a single ounce of strength remaining in his body. All he wanted to do was lie, face pressed against the ground, thanking the universe they had reached dry land, but when he slowly raised his head for the first time and realized where they were, he instantly knew it wouldn’t be that easy.

Around them now sprouted the familiar glowing vines, that Henry knew perfectly well at this point, that marked the territory taken up by the Underland-jungle.


	17. Jungle

Henry’s mind was reeling. He knew he had to get up, reach Thanatos, check if he was okay, and find a way out of here, to a safer place, but he didn’t have the strength.

He had no idea how long he lied on the beach, listening to the chirrups of the jungle when the sounds suddenly changed. What had formerly been almost calming, passive background noise, suddenly turned into angry hissing.

Henry’s head jolted up. Only thanks to his echolocation he made out the body of a snake, around the length of his entire body, that blended in with the background vines so well, only its sounds gave it away.

The exiled prince looked around because he thought he heard the noise of another twister and found himself dodging the bared teeth of one in the last second.

Two more started making their way towards them, including the first one Henry had spotted, and he instantly knew they couldn’t stay here.

With the strength adrenaline gave him, Henry rose to his feet and grabbed his backpack and sword. He focused on the hissing of the twisters and twirled around, slicing the head off the one that had risen behind him with perfect precision.

He cut a second one in half, and severed the head of a third one, but more were on their way, and while Henry thought he could have taken them at his full strength, his head was already starting to spin and hurt from focusing after the ordeals he had gone through before.

He stumbled towards the figure of Thanatos, lying several feet away, and got there just in time to cut one of the snakes in half, that had attempted to dig its teeth into the neck of his bond.

Henry violently swung his sword behind him, killing three more twisters that had approached from there, granting himself a breather. He knelt down beside Thanatos and was immensely relieved to find his bond even half-conscious, staring blankly at his surroundings, and at Henry.

“Death, we need to move!” He shouted, slicing two more snakes. “The twisters will eat us if we don’t find somewhere to hide! I can not fight them in this state, you have to get up!”

Thanatos did not seem like he had the strength to rise, or even answer. His wing still stood in an unnatural direction, his eyes fell close and a wave of panic engulfed Henry. I can not leave him, he thought and realized there was only one way.

In a last attempt to get the snakes off his back for a while, he imitated Ripred again and started spinning around, sword held vertically. Maybe four or five of the twisters fell victim to his attack, which was enough to gain valuable minutes.

While the replacements for the ones he had killed were still on their way, Henry sheathed his sword and grabbed Thanatos’ claws. The flier groaned in pain when his bond tugged at the broken wing, but he had no choice.

With the last of his strength, Henry managed to load Thanatos’ body on his back, his feet were still dragging behind the exiled prince but that was just how it would be. The flier’s head was hanging over his shoulder and for a second, his amber eyes opened, looking at Henry confused, but soon fell shut again.

Henry drew his sword, holding Thanatos in place as well as he could, and sliced at a few twisters ahead. He prayed none of them would get the flier from behind as he slowly but surely made his way away from the river, deeper between the vines.

Though here, he was even less sure of what was a snake, and what a plant. Henry desperately looked for a place to hide in – one that would not eat them instantly, preferably. Stone... I need a cave of some sort, he thought, trying to prevent Thanatos from sliding off his back and ward off the snakes at the same time.

He had no idea how long he had stumbled through the jungle, it had maybe been ten minutes or so. The twisters had given up the attack soon after he had left the river area and now all Henry wanted was a safe place to rest, and tend to their wounds. He would need to set the bone in Thanatos’ wing straight soon, or it would leave permanent damage, he thought, and panted heavily from the strain of battle, the heat that now engulfed him, and from the flier’s non-negligible weight on his back.

When he finally saw the grey of stone in the distance and realized it was a cave entrance, Henry could have screamed in joy. He dragged himself and Thanatos forward, towards it, and saw it was almost entirely concealed behind a curtain of vines covering the entrance. He pushed the plants aside and was among stone walls again. The air in here was cooler, most likely from the stones, and maybe ten feet in, Henry finally dared drop Thanatos on the floor, collapsing beside him instantly.

All, the exiled prince wanted, was to stay on the ground and let sleep take him over, but he knew he couldn’t. First, he had to make sure his flier was alright.

Henry raised his head, powered only by determination at this point. He managed to rise into a sitting position and dragged himself over to Thanatos, noticing the flier’s eyes were closed now.

“Death? Death, can you hear me?” Thanatos didn’t react, and a wave of fear hit Henry.

“Death!” He reached for his bond, collapsing over him from weakness. “Death, you need to speak to me... I need to... to... bandage your wounds... and set the bone straight... but you need to speak to me first...”

Thanatos’ eyelids fluttered, before they opened a little. He let out a groaning sound, and Henry wanted to cry of joy that his bond was still with him, still awake and conscious.

“Death, I know you want to sleep, me too, buddy, okay... I... I have a painkiller for you. Take it and sleep, but only if you promise you’ll wake up again...” He smiled, remembering what the flier had told him, back when he had lost his eye, “Like I woke up, after we bonded, remember?”

“Of course I remember...” Thanatos’ voice was hoarse and quiet, but he was speaking. Henry buried his face in his fur, crusted with blood now, for a moment, before reaching for his backpack.

With limp fingers, he fetched his waterproof container and took out the kit with medical supplies. He picked out a bottle with painkiller and showed it to Thanatos. “It will help you sleep, okay? And I’ll keep watch... I’ll... I’ll stitch you up and I’ll keep watch.”

Henry had no idea how he was supposed to keep his eyes open for a second longer than he needed to, but he was determined to prioritize Thanatos for the moment.

The flier eyed him, then the bottle, but finally agreed to take a sip, when Henry opened it and held it to his mouth. The exiled prince wondered how bad his pain must be for him to actually drink it with so little protest.

Within a few minutes he was out and Henry inspected his injuries, starting to understand why he had taken the painkiller immediately. His wing was broken, it stood off in an unnatural angle, and it took Henry some effort to put it back into the position it belonged. It made him almost glad Thanatos was unconscious now, as he was certain it would have hurt beyond belief otherwise.

Henry strapped a piece of bone he found deeper in the cave to the broken part, using the string he had packed, as a splint. Then he took to cleaning the rips in his wings and the wounds on his body, from countless claws of rats, as well as he could, using only the water he had packed, as there was no other. The bleeding had thankfully stopped on most of them now, though dragging the flier through the jungle, like he had, had not really helped any of his injuries.

Henry ended up sewing together five rips in his wings, and two of the worst cuts on his body, one along his chest, the other in the area of his neck.

When he had finally patched up the flier to the best of his abilities, Henry found his last strength, that the determination to save his bond’s life had given him, leave his body and he collapsed, at last, face pressed into Thanatos’ bloodstained fur.

I told him I’d keep watch... he thought, trying to keep his eyes open, but in vain. He had used up every single energy reserve in his body, and it shut down after only a few moments, letting the exiled prince slip into the dark oblivion of sleep.

Henry awoke from something nudging his side. He widened his eyes and jolted up from where he had slept, hunched over Thanatos.

“You told me you’d keep watch”, a voice mocked, and Henry’s gaze fell upon his bond, who was eyeing him from half-closed but sympathetic and almost mischievous eyes.

“Death – oh goodness I am so sorry, I did not mean to –”, but the flier interrupted him, “Henry, forget it, I understand why you couldn’t. You... you strained yourself enough for me.”

Henry, infinitely glad the flier was not angry, collapsed back onto him. “I... I’m okay, don’t mention it. It’s not like you never did the same and more for me.”

The exiled prince could feel Thanatos chuckle underneath him. “I am alright now. You... you did all this before you fell asleep? How long have we been sleeping, even? That painkiller knocked me out good...”

Henry rose up again, feeling stiff and bruised like never before. He looked down upon his own hands and realized they were smeared in blood – Thanatos’, and his own.

He could feel the flier press his head into his side. “You patched me up, but not yourself... You need to clean your wounds, Henry, or they will become infected.”

He realized Thanatos was right, so he proceeded to use the last of his water to clean the cuts on his arms, his stomach and the claw marks on his cheek. When Henry was done, he realized he had not a single drop of water left and knew he would have to go back to the river to get some.

“Death, you should rest, okay? I’ll get water... and I’ll look for food too.” The exiled prince felt his stomach growl and knew tat Thanatos must be equally hungry. They had both not eaten since before they had encountered Longclaw.

“Be... be careful out there, okay?” Henry was not used to so much genuine worry in Thanatos' voice, but he smiled. “I’ll be fine. I’ve taken worse before.” He hadn’t really, but there was no point in causing the flier any unnecessary worry now.

Henry was gone for maybe an hour, almost half of it he spent stumbling through the jungle, trying to find his way to the river and back to the cave. He filled both his water sacks and used Mys to catch five big fish before starting the trip back.

On his way, he discovered a path that led to a place that had the same vines Hamnet had plucked the plum-like fruit from, and he loaded his pack with them as well, before returning to the cave with Thanatos.

“I... I was starting to get worried...” Henry heard the pain in the flier’s voice and saw, his eyes were now misted in pain. He realized the effect from the painkiller must have worn off entirely now, but when he offered Thanatos another sip, he refused. “I like my head clear, thank you.”

They ate everything up within half an hour and drank up all their water too. Henry now understood why you should always make camp next to a river, it was a hassle going back and forth for fresh water.

“We’ll need to move soon”, Henry said, after they had finished their meal and he was lying, head leaned on Thanatos’ back. “Find a better hideout and... orientate ourselves a little. I have no idea where we are...” The thought worried him greatly. They had never been to this part of the jungle before, at least not from what he recalled, and from what Henry knew about the jungle in general, it wasn’t the best place to get lost in.

“You are right... and with that wing, I can not just proceed to fly over the waterway until we reach a more familiar area either.” Thanatos sighed, “I don’t think I can even move on my own now.”

Henry sensed the thought scared him, and he calmingly stroke his fur. “You’ll be fine... the wing will heal, and then you will fly again. But for now... you’ll have to let me do the carrying, okay?”

“And how will you do that?” Thanatos asked, still visibly uncomfortable with the thought of not being able to move.

“I’ll think of something.” Henry grinned.

“Are you sure this will hold?” The flier skeptically eyed the construction Henry spent the last few hours making from vines and a few bones he had found in the cave.

“We won’t know unless we try”, the exiled prince grinned, shouldered his backpack and then grabbed the construction, signaling Thanatos to climb on. It was shaped like a sleigh with makeshift-skids and a surface to lie on, and Henry was sure it would be a bumpy ride, but it was the best he could do at the moment.

After some hesitation, Thanatos finally did as Henry told him, clinging to the borders firmly. “I really hope this works”, his voice sounded cautious, and his bond kneeled down beside him for a second – “It will. Trust me, Death, okay? I know this is weird and scary and you are in pain, but we’ll pull through – you took care of me so many times before, when I was hurt, now let me do the same thing for you.”

The two exchanged a glance and Thanatos finally nodded, closing his eyes. “Alright. We’ll... we’ll pull through. I believe in you.”

They made their way through the jungle for more than three hours, Henry was on the constant lookout for water. The ride for Thanatos was indeed bumpy and he was heavier than anticipated, but Henry refused to let that affect him. Yes, he was hot and his body ached from all the injuries, and the flier was heavy, but he could not allow himself to show weakness now.

He followed only his own sense of direction, essentially going in a random direction until he finally heard the familiar rushing of water. When he realized the sound came out of a cave system, similar to the one they had slept in earlier, he dragged Thanatos through the entrance and saw a small creek run along the wall.

He followed it deeper in and ended up at the shore of a broad river that bordered the tunnel, that was overgrown with vines almost to the point where they covered the walls and the floor around the river entirely, and Henry felt like walking on a carpet of living plants.

The feeling wasn’t the most pleasant ever, but he decided it was fine, as long as they did not attempt to attack him. He finally allowed Thanatos to get off the construction and they quenched their thirst at the river.

“I should go look for food again, okay?” Henry said, after resting for a while. His stomach was growling, the physical strain from dragging the flier through the jungle had drained him, though he was proud his construction had held.

“Are there no fish in the river?” Thanatos’ eyes were half-closed and Henry saw clearly he was on the brink of fainting from exhaustion again.

He glanced in and saw the water had fish, but they were only about the size of Henry’s pinky and he’d have to catch a dozen to fill them up.

“I’ll look for proper food, and then we eat and you can have more painkiller to sleep, okay?” He attempted to throw Thanatos a reassuring smile.

“No painkiller”, the flier heaved now, “need to... keep head clear...”

Henry stroke his fur, trying to calm him. “Alright, if you say so... I won’t force you, but if you need it, I have the bottle right here.”

Thanatos opened his amber eyes for a second, throwing Henry a glance. “Don’t... go... please...”

A wave of affection for his bond hit the exiled prince and he wrapped his arms around his neck for a second. How badly was he hurt, that he allowed himself to talk like this, he thought. “I won’t be gone for long, I promise. But we need food, you must be hungry too!”

Thanatos nodded slightly, and Henry rose to his feet. “I truly mean it, I’ll be back much sooner than last time.” He glanced at the flier and decided to himself he’d do anything in his power to fulfill that promise.

Henry was out looking for food for maybe half an hour, he had one encounter with a four-foot-long frog that had flung his tongue at him, the exiled prince had been forced to finish him off.

He pondered if the meat was edible, but decided not to risk it. After a little more searching, heavily relying on his enhanced hearing, he finally found more water, this time with proper fish in it. He caught five again and made his way back to Thanatos. This time, he had taken care to mark his way back so that finding the cave again was no problem.

They ate, drank and then the flier fell back on the floor instantly, still drained from his injuries.

“You alright?” Henry sat down beside him, not bothering to fetch his fur blanket as it was terribly hot anyway.

“I... I’ll be fine.” He sounded not fine. Worry flooded Henry, he knew exactly how Thanatos sounded when he was fine, and this was not it. The heat and the pain must be a terrible combination, he thought, comfortingly pressing his face into his fur.

“Hey, I’m here... okay? We’ll be fine. We just have to stay here until you feel better – we have water and I now know where there is food. Then we’ll find the way to the nibbler colony, and we’ll be fine.”

He reached for his water sack and poured half of its content over his own head, the other over Thanatos. The cool of the water helped a little, but not much.

Henry tried not to show how scared he actually was. Now, lying here, in the dark, somewhere in an unknown part of the jungle, he realized how utterly desperate their situation actually was. They were in the middle of nowhere, with Thanatos who couldn’t fly, and no idea even in which direction and how far away the colony was.

The situation reminded him of when he had been stranded alone on the crawler island, suddenly, for a moment the same fear engulfed him, that had kept him from sleeping back then. But then Henry felt Thanatos’ fur against his back and realized things were much different now – because this time, they were together.

He was still frightened, but he decided he couldn’t let it show. He needed to be hopeful... to be strong, for Thanatos. It was his turn now, to give the flier comfort, like he had so many times in the past done for Henry, and the exiled prince was determined to do so, to the best of his abilities.

For a while, all he could hear was Thanatos’ breathing and the rushing of the water next to them. Then, the flier suddenly raised his voice – “I... what even happened, after we fell off that cliff? I... I don’t remember exactly. All I know is that we were in the water, and that you dragged me away, and then... that cave.”

Henry sighed, and started talking. He told him everything, how he had jumped after him and Longclaw, how the cave had collapsed, burying all of the rats along with their plan to flood Regalia, how the current had carried them to the shore here, and how he had battled the snakes and dragged Thanatos to safety. Henry realized his own memory of it was blurry, almost like everything had been a dream.

“You... saved my life”, the flier finally whispered, and Henry smiled. “Like I would save mine.”

He could have sworn he saw Thanatos smile, from the corner of his eye. “You... goodness, I am so sorry I even dragged you into this feud.” The flier sighed and closed his eyes. “You... you have no place in it and you should not have to suffer from it. When I saw Longclaw holding you, threatening to throw you off that cliff... I... I thought I would... I...” he sounded so helpless, so desperate, like he was about to cry, and Henry scooted closer to him, despite the heat.

“Don’t blame yourself, please”, he tried to sound calming. “It is my feud now as it is yours, our lives are one, remember? And honestly, I don’t really mind. We’ll teach him a lesson eventually – he made a mistake, you know? The mistake to mess with us, and he’ll pay... in due time.”

Thanatos’ voice was hoarse, “thank you... for everything. I would not have survived without you today.”

“Well then I, at last, repaid you for saving me more times than any of us can count”, Henry chuckled.

They proceeded to lie in comfortable silence, pressed against each other, despite the heat. They both needed the feeling of knowing they were not alone in this foreign and dangerous environment more than the temperature bothered them. And when sleep, at last, consumed Henry, he drifted away knowing Thanatos was there and would warn him of danger, as he would the flier.

Henry awoke joltingly, at first he did not know what had woken him up, but then he realized it was Thanatos, who was now cowering over him, eyes wide open, like in fear.

At first, Henry reached for his sword, convinced there was some sort of threat to fight, but then everything remained silent, and Thanatos moved away, trembling, as Henry noticed now.

“Hey, what... what happened?” He asked, still anxiously glancing around for possible threats. “Did you hear something?”

The flier did not respond, he averted his glance instead, almost as if he was ashamed for having woken Henry up. The exiled prince noticed he was still shaking, and recognized the signs instantly. He was still suffering from enough nightmares himself to know the feeling of waking up from one.

Henry tossed his sword aside and wrapped his arms around Thanatos’ neck. Only now he noticed how much the flier was indeed trembling, and the exiled prince tried to sound as comforting and reassuring as possible – “Hey, hey... Death, I’m here, okay? It was a nightmare... wasn’t it? You’re okay, it was just a dream...”

Thanatos did not respond, and Henry kept talking, the same thing over and over, words he thought he would like to hear himself after waking up, shaking from fear. “I am not leaving, you hear? And if there is ever any real threat, my sword is right over there, that threat will soon feel threatened itself, as it should.”

After more than ten minutes of lying in the same position, Thanatos finally spoke – “You... were gone. Vanished. I... I was looking... screaming for you... but you were gone. I... I was...”

“Scared you lost me?” Henry knew those dreams perfectly well, the fear of waking up, realizing he was alone, was a very old one, one he had had even before his exile, and he knew how terrifying the sensation could be.

“Don’t be ashamed, you hear?” He realized the flier was probably fighting his pride to even be able to talk about it, “I have those dreams too, and they are terrifying. Sometimes it’s just not enough to wake up, sometimes we need someone else to tell us we’ll be fine, and that we aren’t alone... and there is no shame in that. Please don’t think you have to keep it all in, I’m here, and not just to protect you from threats.”

His voice was slightly shaking now, and he chose his next words carefully – “Your fears are my fears now, as your enemies are my enemies. Our lives are one, and they will always be, no matter how much we end up fighting or screaming at each other in the future. You know we will do that, there is really no use denying it – it’s just the way we are. But know that I am as scared of losing you as you are of losing me. You told me I am your reason to keep going, well, you turned into mine too.”

Henry felt Thanatos’ breathing calm a little, as he kept talking, “You once told me there doesn’t have to be a purpose for living at all times, sometimes you have to spend time looking for one. And I believe I have finally found mine. It is this bond... this bond is my reason to keep going now. There are others, sure – the sheer sensation of adventure and exploration is a reason, the strife to become better is another, the will to protect my friends, old and new, is also one. But this bond – this bond is what truly makes life out here worth living.”

He felt the flier had calmed down entirely now, eyeing him from half-closed amber eyes. “You... truly mean that?”

“I do”, Henry said and smiled – and rarely ever in his life, he had been more certain of something.

“There is a clearing over here, I believe we are on the right track!” Henry ran back to where he had left the contraption with Thanatos on it and dragged it along, towards the clearing.

Two days had passed since they had stranded in the jungle, and they were getting by better than Henry thought they would, even if it was a hassle at times.

The heat was bothering both of them and Thanatos still slipped in and out of consciousness almost at random, most likely due to the temperature and his severe injuries. Henry had gotten more used to carrying him now, but it was still difficult, with the uneven floor and the large number of plants in the way.

When they reached the clearing they took a short break, drinking some of their water. Henry just wanted to continue on, when he suddenly heard something.

He froze, immediately gripping his sword and protectively standing in front of Thanatos, who was utterly defenseless at the moment.

At first, he saw nothing, not even his echolocation worked as well as it should, the vines obstructed it, and Henry felt almost blind now, having gotten used to seeing his surroundings clearly usually.

Only after his eye had focused, in the dim light the vines and creeks gave off, he suddenly realized they were surrounded. Five pairs of eyes were staring down at him, and Henry had to use all his self-control to not fall into attack-mode instantly. But this time, he decided to wait. The creatures had not attacked yet, and suddenly, Hamnet’s words rang in his ears – _Most creatures here only attack if they are left with no other choice._

Well, I hope this won’t cost us our lives, Henry thought, keeping his hand on his sword still. Only when one of the pairs of eyes moved forward, out of the vines and onto the clearing, Henry realized what it was.

“You are hissers!” He called, staring at the giant, purple-blue glistening lizard before him, that now closed its previously extended ruff.

Henry looked around and realized all five of them had come out of the jungle now. They shimmered in colors from yellow-brown, over green to purple-blue, and the tallest one, the first that had come out, now raised its voice, deep and almost soothing – “What seek human and flier in this land, that is the hissers’?”

Henry hesitantly let go of his sword. The last thing he needed was them to think he was a threat. “We did not know this was your land”, he answered, looking at the one who had spoken, who he presumed was their leader, “My flier is injured and we have washed ashore a few days’ trek from here. We are looking for our friends, the nibblers that live here, in the jungle, but we are lost. By no means did we intend to insult you or your people.” He thought he was getting the hang of this “being polite in order for things to not instantly want to kill you”-thing slowly but surely.

The purple hisser lowered his head. “Far off track, you have wandered then. We see the flier is hurt. We may show you the way to the nibblers.”

For the first time, actual hope rose in Henry. “We would be in your debt if you did that. We have the means to pay you... if you want any of what we have to offer, that is.”

“We do not need your goods, human”, the hisser responded, “we will help because it costs nothing to help.”

Henry sighed audibly with relief. He watched the other lizards approach now, and suddenly felt a nudge in the side. When he turned his head he stared into the curious eyes of a small one, a baby most likely, only about half his own size. Behind it, he saw two others, one even smaller, and realized this must be a pack of some sort – perhaps two or three families with their young.

He looked back at the purple hisser and smiled. “We’ll gladly accept your help, then.”


	18. Charos

“Larr said it will only be a few hours more.” Henry was sitting on the back of a huge, almost entirely yellow-green-ish hisser, that also carried Thanatos, who now looked at him. “If you say so.”

Almost three days they had now spent traveling with the lizards, and so far, the journey had been quite enjoyable. The hissers were rather quiet traveling companions, that usually left Henry and Thanatos to their own devices during breaks and when they assembled to sleep.

They had traversed a part of the jungle entirely foreign to both flier and human, and hadn’t the hissers showed them the way, they would have never made it this far.

Once, they had crossed a place swarming with mites, the lizards had warned them to approach, as their sting brought a swift death. Then, there had been that seemingly unsuspicious clearing, but when Henry had suggested taking a break there, Larr, the purple leader of the hissers, had told him to throw a rock into the middle, before entering. When Henry had done that, he had found the clearing was no clearing, instead, it was the wide-open trap-mouth of a flesh-eating plant, that had instantly snapped shut when the rock had hit it.

Overall, they had had several encounters with some of the nastier residents of the jungle, but every time, the hissers had foreseen and warned them of the danger.

Now, they were almost at the colony, and Henry took out his water sack and drank the last of its contents. They had come across several springs with fresh water, so his supply had never run out before. And now they would soon be back at the nibblers’.

For the first time, Henry pondered what the mice might think of their long absence. He twirled around the bone, he had been carving, mindlessly. The new figurine depicted two people, a rider holding up a sword in flames and a flier with spread wings, a stain on his face and a scar, splitting it in half.

Henry had left most of his figurines with Kismet, when they had left, he had smiled and told her they were a gift so that she would remember him. Kismet had scoffed, but Henry had a feeling she had been happy to receive them. He had even left her the one of himself. This one would do a better job at representing him – them – he thought, and resumed carving.

An hour passed and Henry finished the figurine at last. He turned it around and signed “Death Rider” at the bottom, before slightly kicking Thanatos to get his attention. “Hey, look here, I made a thing!”

The flier stared at the image of them in shock and awe. He had only glanced over a couple of Henry’s carvings before, and he was visibly impressed with the work – “Hey, we look great. This... this new hobby of yours may not be practical, but it sure makes for some nice-looking art. Teslas will praise it.”

They spent the rest of the ride in comfortable silence, Henry packed away his carving things and played a little with Larr’s baby son Noar, who had taken quite the liking to him and Thanatos, over the course of their travel together.

Henry had no idea why he even liked taking care of him, he had never gotten along with kids too well, but maybe that was just something you grew into as you got older. As of recently, both the mouse babies and now the hisser pups had always liked him instantly, and Henry had eventually found he had accepted kids seemed to harbor a fascination for him now. Not to mention Boots’ love for his footwear. And his spinning.

Then, the hisser they were riding, stopped. Henry looked up and noticed they stood before a clearing – one that was very familiar. “Here lies the nibbler colony. We will not take you further.”

Henry and Thanatos exchanged glances. “It’s time... I guess.”

The exiled prince helped his bond off the hisser’s back and they soon stood before Larr, Thanatos leaning on Henry for support. “Hey, you guys were great, thanks for taking us here. We owe you.” The exiled prince smiled at the hisser, who nodded at him.

“If the case should arise that we need you, Death Rider, we will call in that debt”, the leader of the hissers spoke. Noar on his back called “We’ll miss you, we’ll miss you!”, and Henry grinned at him. “We’ll see you again... someday. I’m sure.” With that, they turned towards the clearing with the hot spring – and the nibbler colony.

When Henry had finally helped Thanatos out onto the clearing and towards the familiar lake, he could almost not believe they were actually back. “Want to sit on the beach while I get the –”, but before Henry could finish his sentence, a white furball whizzed through the curtain of vines and towards the newcomers.

“YOU’RE BACK!”, it screamed and ran the still startled Henry over, so that both he and the flier landed backward, in the sand.

When the exiled prince realized he was staring into the face of Curie, he could almost not believe his eyes. She must be fully grown now, he thought, eyes on the pretty white mouse that was only slightly shorter than him now. He felt Thanatos dig his nose into her fur and the three soon ended in a group hug on the floor.

Henry had no idea how long it lasted, before a different familiar voice sounded, from somewhere beyond his field of view – “Looks like sister was right this time, you are back.”

Henry recognized the voice instantly – “Cevian! I mean... I’d greet you, but your sister is currently keeping me from doing so by sitting her way too grown-up hide on me.”

All of them broke into vigorous laughter.

As soon as Lovelace saw them, she decided to throw a spontaneous welcome-party in their honor and led them inside, where soon most of the colony assembled to eat and hear the stories their old friends had to tell.

Henry was in the middle of demonstrating his new abilities when suddenly something grabbed him from behind and lifted him off the ground. He cried in surprise, not having watched out for that, but then a voice growled “don’t you dare disappear like that ever again, you hear? I am still your teacher and I demand updates on things”, and the exiled prince grinned.

“Good to see you too, Teslas”, he mumbled, face awkwardly pressed into the nibbler’s black fur, who was still lifting him up. He must have really missed me, Henry thought, considering he never leaves his workshop normally, and now he turns up here, at a party.

“But hey, I even have something for you!” Henry called after Teslas had put him back on his feet and he remembered the rock he had carried all the way here.

“I will now take this boy to my workshop, and I sincerely hope none of you have a problem with that – for your own good.” Teslas growled and Henry saw Lovelace smirk. “It’s not like anyone could stop you anyway. Hang in there, Henry!”, she called after him, and he grinned back, awkwardly waving at her and Thanatos who looked like he wanted to facepalm, while Teslas firmly gripped his arm and dragged him with, towards the workshop.

When they arrived in the cave, where Teslas built his inventions, Henry thought it had only become even more clustered since he had last been here. He had to tell the entire story again – he left out most parts about his and Thanatos’ estrangement, they had agreed to avoid bringing that up to others as much as possible. Instead, he focused on what Kismet had taught him and how she had cherished the vision aid lense Telsas had made her. Okay, maybe she hadn’t exactly cherished it openly, but Henry was certain she had – in her own way.

He finally pulled out the figurine of her, one of the few he had taken along, to remember her, and showed it to Teslas. The nibbler was indeed impressed with his new skill and grinned at the way she held the lense.

“Good to know that you at least didn’t waste any time, even if the one you learned from wasn’t me”, he said, and Henry nodded. “It is almost impossible, I know, but Kismet’s as good at keeping people on their toes as you – if not better.” They both grinned and Henry was happy the nibbler was open-minded enough to not instantly judge her by her species.

Then, his gaze fell on his backpack and he remembered the Skyrock. “Goodness, I almost forgot again – I do have a thing for you. We fetched it from that icy cave system beneath the waterway I told you about. Kismet said it’s... a rock that once fell from the sky.”

Teslas’ head jolted up and his ears stood straight. “Pardon me...?”

Henry grinned, fetched his backpack, and turned it upside down. The contents spilled out, and at last, there it was – he had to unwrap it from the cloth he had packed it in, but finally, Henry lied the rock, metal ball, or whatever really it was, on Teslas’ desk.

The black nibbler eyed it in awe, with big, round eyes, and only carefully drew closer. He inspected the odd substance for a while, then turned back to Henry. His eyes shone with a light that the exiled prince hadn’t seen since they had successfully tested the ignifer, almost a year ago.

“This... Henry, do you have any idea what you have brought me here?” His voice was almost shaking with excitement.

Henry grinned – only Teslas could ever get so worked up over a rock. “Nope. But that’s precisely why I brought it to you. Maybe you could use it for something.”

The nibbler overheard the slightly mocking tone in Henry’s voice, “Something... SOMETHING? Henry, we will not just make SOMETHING out of this...” He went back to inspecting the substance, mumbling to himself. Then, he moved away to one of the chests that stood on the floor and turned it upside down. Out fell dozens of leather scrolls, those that Henry could see had designs of all kinds on them – different types of weapons, armor and other gadgets, some of which he did not even recognize.

“Hey, what are those, why haven’t you showed me any of them?” He picked one up that displayed a thing he had never seen before. The sketch appeared to be a weapon of some kind as there were labels that said “blade”, but it was not a sword or knife.

The thing was elongated and bent, to form a third tip, along with the two at the ends. The title was written in Teslas’ shorthand, and although Henry could decipher the symbols at this point, the word made no sense to him. “A Boom... Boom-er-ang? What in the world is this?”

Teslas chuckled. “Why did I never show any of them to him, he asks... YOU WERE GONE the last half a year, THAT’S WHY. I mean I had to occupy myself somehow while you weren’t here. I made a few... designs, for you. For future use.” Henry stared at the mountain of scrolls. “A... few.”

Teslas scoffed, taking the scroll with the sketch of the thing apparently called “Boomerang” from Henry. “Yes, a few. But this one is for later. Maybe. If we ever find time and use for it.”

“It looked neat though...” Henry mumbled, but Teslas had already moved on. He was digging through the scrolls and muttering to himself, leaving Henry to stand in the room, unsure what the black nibbler expected of him.

“Hey, eh... Henry, how about you go back to the party and fetch me someone who’s good in geology. Maybe Lyella or Darwin... or both. I need more information on this rock before I can pick something to do with it.”

Henry sighed. “But only if you promise me I can take a look at the designs in that chest at some point... soon.”

Teslas was already occupied with the rock again. “Sure, sure, I mean, they are for you anyway. But now go! I NEED ANSWERS!”

Henry chuckled as he left the inventor to his work. Teslas would never change, but that was the amazing thing about him.

“This is a most peculiar material, but highly fascinating indeed.” It was the day after the party and they were standing around the rock in a group of four, Teslas, Henry, and the two nibblers Darwin and Lyella, former dark brown and slightly taller than Teslas, latter light grey and a little smaller than the males.

“It is”, Lyella supported Darwin’s claim, eyeing it again from all sides. “It looks like a rock, but it is not one. It’s some form of metal, though I have never before seen this particular alloy.”

“Not just the alloy”, Darwin spoke now, “parts of it seem to consist of something none of us have ever seen before. There is iron in it, as well as silver, but the rest...”, he shook his head. “You said it was a meteorite, Teslas?”

The black nibbler nodded. “The boy found it in some caves underneath the waterway. It is not surprising it’s unknown then. But what we are interested in, are its qualities. How hard is it, how well can you work it – it is not one of those metals that burn your skin away and have you grow weird things like third arms and stuff?” Teslas suddenly asked, and Henry looked at him, alarmed. Metals that... what?

“Oh no, it is not radioactive. According to the tests we made, it is entirely safe.” Lyella assured, but Darwin chuckled – “Well, yes, according to our tests it is. It’s no guarantee it is ACTUALLY safe though. It is from space, after all, it might do something we have no test for.”

Henry furrowed his brows and eyed the substance suspiciously now. He had not even considered it might be dangerous.

“Relax, boy, you were carrying it with you this entire time, were you not? Were it dangerous, you would have already noticed something... most likely.” Lyella joined Darwin’s awkward chuckle.

“Anyway”, Teslas cleared his throat, “back to the IMPORTANT stuff. Like... what is it good for? Is it hard, easy to work? We already established it’s light. Does that mean it breaks easily?”

Darwin stepped closer, pulling out some sort of leather scroll he had made notes on. “Oh, quite the opposite actually. This alloy is harder than any conventional material known to us, save maybe diamond, it was incredibly hard even splitting off a sample to test.”

Lyella glanced at the note sheet too. “It is light and incredibly hard but melts rather easily. You should be able to forge it into whatever you need without trouble, though we wouldn’t recommend exposing the finished product to great heat, as it could start deforming.”

“In fact, if you’d like a recommendation on what to make from it, we think it’s the perfect material for some sort of blade”, Darwin handed the scroll over to Lyella and stepped forward, “It is light, so it will be easy to wield and harder than the steel you usually make your blades from.”

Henry and Teslas exchanged glances. “But I already have a sword and a dagger, and reforging my sword from this would make it impossible to use the ignifer on it, according to what those two just said.”

But Teslas’ eyes still shone with excitement. “Who said anything about REPLACING one of your current blades? In fact, I believe I have the perfect design for this... here... somewhere...” He had moved over to his chest and started digging through it.

Henry, Lyella, and Darwin watched curiously, and only after a few minutes of searching Teslas finally seemed to have found what he was looking for. He held the scroll, he had fetched, high in the air, calling “THIS WILL BE GLORIOUS!”, then unrolled it on top of the table, before the eyes of his visitors – and Henry’s jaw dropped open.

“You are making... a sword out of it? Don’t you already have one of those?”, Thanatos was lying on the beach, his wing had been freshly splinted and it was already in the process of healing. His other injuries had been tended to as well, and overall, he was feeling and looking much better already. It would still take him a few weeks until he’d be able to fly again, but he was getting there.

Lovelace had offered to harbor them until the flier’s wing was fully healed and Henry had accepted, partially because, with Thanatos unable to fly, they couldn’t really go anywhere anyway. And then, he also had a few things to make and discuss with Teslas. A few-week break at the nibblers’ was honestly exactly what both he and the flier needed, after all the ordeals. And then, when they were fully recovered, they would find a way to track Longclaw and have their revenge. But all in due time.

“No, no, no – you don’t UNDERSTAND!” Henry was pacing up and down before him, barely able to hold back his excitement. “Not just A sword – it will be different from the one I have, and –”

“Henry, a sword is a sword.” Thanatos apparently did not share Henry’s excitement.

“And that’s where you are wrong.” The exiled prince plopped down beside him, reluctantly. “Just wait until you see it, and then tell me again that it’s “just a sword”.”

Thanatos sighed. “Alright. Let’s do it like that. I can not wait.” The sarcasm in his voice was evident, but his eyes were smiling.

Henry grinned. “It’ll be great. You know, Teslas has a bunch of designs for new things for me, apparently, that’s what happens if we leave him alone for too long. I can’t wait to see and try them all!”

Thanatos was silent for a moment, and Henry was about to take out his carving equipment, as Teslas had told him he’d need to get everything ready before they could start making the blade, which would take until the evening, when Thanatos suddenly spoke – “Alright, and can you now finally tell me what you have been keeping from me – again?”

Henry jerked around, confused as to what he was talking about – then the realization hit him. He cursed internally for being so distracted by the meteorite and the new sword that he forgot to show Teslas the design he himself had come up with.

Henry sighed. “I... I’m sorry, I really am, and I was going to tell you, perhaps even today. I just wanted to ask Teslas for his opinion first, because it’s... it’s just a design for a new gadget, but it’s also... you know”, he chuckled awkwardly, “... controversial, even for me.”

Thanatos listened up. “Is it now?”

Henry started playing around with Mys nervously. “It... listen, can I talk to Teslas first, and then... we talk to you together? It’ll be much easier like that.”

Thanatos scoffed. “Why in the world would you need support to talk about something as trivial as a new design... to your own bond?”

Henry sighed. “Because you may be my bond, but you’re also a proud flier, and the moment I show you what it is, you’ll interrupt me and start yelling that I’m trying to disrespect you and just stop listening altogether.”

Thanatos chuckled. “Try me.”

“I’d really rather not.” Henry started burying his hands in the sand. “I promise I’ll tell you, but together with Teslas.”

The flier nudged him in the side with his head. “Henry, spill it. There is nothing, I promise, that you could suggest, that will make me yell at you. As long as its sole purpose is not, you know, ACTUALLY just to disrespect me.”

“It’s not”, Henry sighed, he thought about how he had first had this idea, almost immediately after they had left the jungle.

He thought about how much more efficiently they had killed the cutters when Thanatos had flown upside down. Back then, he had not even known if he would ever bring this idea up to anyone, but at this point, he at least had a clear design – somewhat. He was sure it’d need work, but for now, he at least had somewhere to start.

“It’s... listen, if this works, if we FIND a way to make it work, it’ll make us considerably stronger in battle. And by considerably, I mean a LOT. That is its purpose. Just... try and keep that in mind, okay?” Henry stood up to fetch his mother’s notebook from his backpack, that he had stored in their sleeping cave.

When he returned, Thanatos was still lying on the beach, and for some reason, Henry’s heart was beating out of his chest. He had no idea why he was so nervous, but it was now or never.

“So, what is it now?” The flier asked, turning his way.

“Just... look yourself.” Henry opened the page and lied the book down before the flier.

“That is... is that... a saddle?” Thanatos’ tone was unbelieving and Henry squinted his eye, trying to prepare for the incoming tirade. “Henry, you know exactly why fliers don’t wear saddles, it is symbolic of our equality with the humans. It –”

The exiled prince tried to interrupt him, “I know, and I told you it was –”, but as expected, Thanatos did not let him finish. “After everything you have learned, and after everything we’ve been through, are you still seriously suggesting this? It is –”

“Death, can you let me explain for a second?” Henry was getting annoyed. He dug his fingers into the sand now, but Thanatos just continued talking. “Explain? What is there to explain? All I see is that you have not –”

That’s when Henry had enough. “THIS IS EXACTLY WHY I DID NOT WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT THIS!”

Finally, the flier was silent, and his bond sighed before he continued. “I TOLD you you wouldn’t listen to me, and just start lecturing me about how it’s disrespectful – didn’t I? And what did you do?”

“Well, that’s because it is.” Thanatos scoffed. Henry rolled his eyes. “What did I tell you was its purpose?”

The flier hesitated. “To... make us stronger in battle? But how could a saddle make us...”

“That is PRECISELY WHAT I WANTED TO EXPLAIN before YOU INTERRUPTED ME!” Henry called, still fed up about having to fight so hard just to be able to elaborate on the concept. “Do you really think I’d even bring this up if it wasn’t amazing in its concept? It’s not fleshed out yet, but if we work on it, it could change everything. And I actually mean that.”

Thantos was silent now, eyeing him from narrow eyes. Finally, he spoke again – “Alright. You know what... go ahead. Explain. I am not letting you put any sort of saddle on me ever, but... explain. I believe I owe you that much trust at least.”

Henry sighed audibly. “Thank you. That’s... honestly more than I expected. And I will, believe me. You won’t be disappointed.” He took another deep breath, picking up the notebook, getting ready to start talking, when a voice suddenly called from the curtain of vines – “Henry, dad is looking for you. He said he needs your help with something!”

Henry threw a glance back at the curtain and saw Curie’s head poking out. He looked at Thanatos and shrugged. “Guess the saddle will have to wait, then, sorry.”

The flier rolled his eyes. “It’s not like I’m missing much anyway.” Henry kicked him for that remark but finally followed Curie into the colony, towards her father’s workshop.

“Henry, come, it is done now! You can finally take a look!” The exiled prince heard Teslas yell and immediately jumped to his feet. He flung the curtain to the workshop aside and approached the forge in the corner of the room almost cautiously.

A week had passed since he and Thanatos had arrived at the colony, and Teslas and Henry had spent almost all of it working on the new blade. They had needed to adjust the design a little, come up with an idea for a sheath, make a bunch of custom molds – but at last, here it was, finally done.

Henry had also filled the nibbler in on the details of his saddle idea, and Teslas had been over the moon when he finally understood the concept behind it. They had talked to Thanatos together after all, and even though the flier was still rather skeptical, they had managed to convince him to at least let them do a few experiments with the design.

But now Henry was eagerly staring at the table next to the forge, that was covered up by a cloth. “Is that really necessary?”, he asked, eyeing Teslas, but the nibbler grinned. “You know it is.”

He finally stood next to Henry and, glancing over at the final sketch the exiled prince had made a couple days ago, that hung on the wall above the table, and carefully unveiled the result of their efforts.

Henry could not suppress an enormous grin from spreading over his face. The sword that lied before him now, was nothing short of magnificent. The blade was pitch black, like the raw material had been, broad, and very long. Henry carefully gripped the handle with both hands, it was the exact perfect length for that. They had even added a little hump in the middle, to separate the handle in two halves.

When Henry raised the sword from where it lied, he was once more surprised at how little it weighed. He estimated its full length on around four feet six or seven, and for how big it was, it maybe weighed the same as his other, considerably shorter, sword.

“A dual-handed blade for close-up and grounded combat you wanted, and you received – I’m pretty sure”, Teslas laughed. Henry tried twirling the new sword around, which wasn’t easy, considering its length. “This... this is fantastic, Teslas, you... I love it.”

The nibbler grinned, putting his front paws to his hips. “Well, what else did you expect from something we both worked on this hard?”

They exchanged excited glances and Henry grabbed the blade with a single hand now, which was not what it was meant for, but very possible. He inspected the handle and the primary, long, as well as the secondary, smaller crossguard, a few inches below the big one, consisting of metal points that stood out to the side. The blade itself was honed razor-sharp and overall felt incredibly good to hold and swing.

Though when he tried swinging it around inside the workshop, Teslas quickly banned him from doing so, sending him outside. “Or you’ll demolish everything in here within seconds”, he said.

“Oh and – while you’re at it”, he called after Henry, when he was already on his way out, “why don’t you come up with a name for it? We agree on the fact that it deserves one, right?”

Henry nodded and left, contemplating the matter. When he stepped out, he saw Thanatos and Curie on the beach, sitting and talking. He approached, the new sword shouldered, and called out to them – “How is it?” Henry twirled the blade around once, something he’d definitely need to practice more, and rammed the tip into the floor. The handle reached up to his chest now, and he thought the tip lacked some sort of knob, maybe.

“That... THAT is the new sword?” Thanatos was visibly surprised, and Henry grinned. “Do you now understand why “sword” doesn’t equal “sword”? Because the old toothpick I use normally can not possibly compare to this!” He took it up again and sliced the air, the sharp, black blade made a quiet, but not unpleasant sound. Henry instantly found he liked having a bigger, stronger sword, to keep enemies at distance and block attacks more effectively.

“That... is a nice blade”, Thanatos admitted. “Though... isn’t it a little big?”

Henry rolled his eyes. “That is the POINT, Death. I wanted a bigger, preferably dual-handed sword for close-up combat, when I have to fight enemies bigger than me, or when I’m on the ground. And if you’re worried that it looks heavy, it is not. The material is really light, I can almost not feel a difference in weight to my normal sword.”

“It’s really pretty!”, Curie called, drawing closer and inspecting it. “Does it have a name, like your dagger?”

“It will have one... soon enough.”

“Any ideas?”, the flier asked. Henry pondered for a second. He glanced at the black blade, then back at Thanatos.

He raised the sword and held it the way it was meant to be held, in front of his body, with both hands. Then, he suddenly thought about the prophecy, and how he was the Death Rider again now.

“How about I call it...”, Henry grinned, “Charos.” Thanatos looked up. “You want to name your sword after the Grim Reaper?”

The exiled prince chuckled. “Well, it will be reaping lives for sure. The color matches too. And besides, aren’t we essentially the Grim Reaper ourselves? I thought it would be fitting.”

“You know what”, the flier smiled, “it sort of is. Except for that knob. You’re good at carving now, aren’t you? Make a new one. It’s way too boring at the moment, considering how fancy the sword itself is.”

They all broke into laughter. “You can bet I will!”, called Henry, before raising Charos above his head, with a single hand. “You all can bet!”


	19. Pride

Henry was slowly turning, trying to keep an eye on all, Cevian, Cylindra, and Pollux, Teslas’ oldest child, that were circling him, looking for an opening to attack. He was gripping Charos with both hands, holding it before his body protectively, and listening for their steps carefully.

When they had finished the sword, three weeks ago, Cevian had been so excited and impressed with it, she had made it her personal duty to train with Henry, and her brother, as well as her best friend, had immediately agreed to help. The three mice had become Henry’s most common sparring partners, over the course of the weeks, and not last thanks to them, he had gotten used to the new sword fairly quickly.

He glanced over the blade now, regarding the new knob he had carved out of a bone, that looked like a bat spreading its wings, with pride. “Won’t the wings be in constant danger of breaking off though?”, had been Thanatos’ first comment, and Henry had laughed, dismissing it and claiming he could replace it anytime, after all.

He felt the steps of Cylindra approaching from behind and ducked away under her attack, rolling off to the side, and blocking Pollux’ claws with the blade. Cevian leaped at him from upfront and he held Charos horizontally, to block her path.

Having a bigger sword that covered more space and of which he did not have to fear it would break under a lot of pressure was fantastic, and he was fairly versed at using it now.

Sparring wasn’t the only thing Henry had spent his time on though, over the last couple weeks. Lovelace and Teslas had found a compromise on how to divide his time between chores for both, they decided they would switch every second day. He was working in Teslas’ workshop for two days, then ran errands for Lovelace the next two, and so on.

Henry had found the compromise acceptable, especially as in between switching, he had successfully pushed through that he would always get a day off for training and doing whatever he wanted as well.

Today was one of his free days. He had just returned from a supply mission to the Fount yesterday, and tomorrow he would start working with Teslas.

Most of the errands he had run for Lovelace so far had gone to the Fount. At first, he only supplied the nibbler colony there, who were close friends to the mice in the jungle. He had refused to travel directly to the human settlement before, but when the nibblers at the colony there told him the humans needed supplies more than they, he had – cautiously at first – led his first trading party there.

They needed goods direly as the plague had hit them hard and many of their old suppliers were dead, or too occupied with their own aftermath of the plague, to keep supporting them. Regalia and the nibblers were the only ones that remained.

To Henry’s surprise, all his fears about being unwelcome had been unjustified. Apparently, most of them cared more for the things he brought than for his outcast status. Further, he was a friend of the nibblers, and luckily, his reputation from supporting the quest in the jungle and on the waterway had spread, and York and Susannah welcomed him almost with open arms. Some of the people had even thanked him for saving Luxa and called him a hero.

Curiously enough, it had been Howard’s younger siblings, who had taken the biggest liking to him, throughout his, at this point, three visits there. Chim, Hero, and Kent loved how he always had some sort of story to tell, and they were visibly fascinated with his entire image. Stellovet had pretended to dislike him at first, but Henry had quickly noticed her eyes shone exactly the same way as her younger siblings’ when he talked of his adventures, perils, and battles.

Over the course of his visits, she had apparently grown more and more tired of pretending and soon turned into one of his biggest admirers herself. The last time he had arrived, she had even waited for him at the gate, eyes shining with excitement, much to Howard’s disapproval.

Howard himself was the only one who still cared little for Henry, all he ever did when his siblings clustered around the outcast and bombarded him with questions, was raise an eyebrow dismissively. Henry had even overheard him talking to Stellovet about how she should stay away from the “dangerous outcast”, to which she had simply responded – “from what you told me, didn’t he save your ass at the waterway?” That had done the job of silencing Howard for a while, and Henry had had to suppress a chuckle.

It had been weird seeing all of them again, like this – without them knowing who he was. He had spent his childhood playing with them and making fun of them, especially Howard and Stellovet, but now it was almost nice to be able to enjoy the company of humans – any humans – again.

Luxa and Gregor had been there once as well, she had mentioned she had wanted to show the Overlanders and Hazard, who had moved to Regalia after Hamnet’s death, the Fount, and he had been able to ask for the fate of the plague victims.

Howard and Andromeda were perfectly healthy again, though Howard had visibly lost weight and his features had matured, similarly to Henry’s, throughout his first half a year in exile.

He had been relieved to find out Ares was alive as well, and though he was still in the hospital, he was almost cured too. It would take him a few more weeks to get out, as he had been the worst case, but he would fully recover soon.

Gregor’s mother was still in the hospital as well, she had not been as sick as Ares, but from what Henry had understood, the doctors had discovered Overlanders had some sort of resistance to the cure, and while it had eased the symptoms, it had not erased the plague from her body yet. They had needed to conduct more experiments and readjust the formula a little, which had taken longer than anticipated. Now, they were fairly optimistic again, saying the latest version would most likely work, though it would take a long time for her to actually get out of the hospital. Half a year at best, the doctors had told Gregor.

He was fairly frustrated at that, but Henry suspected Luxa was almost happy. This way, he had a reason to come back to the Underland frequently, apparently, he was in Regalia almost every day now. The two had visibly grown closer, over the last year, and normally, Henry would have teased her endlessly about it, but like this, he had to resort to rambling to Thanatos and the mice about it.

It had been good to see her again – she had grown so much, this last year. Henry realized she was thirteen already, like Gregor, and a wave of that specific feeling, when you discover kids are growing without you being prepared for it, had hit him unexpectedly.

He thought about how his own eighteenth birthday was in a few months and suddenly asked himself if one day, his age would become meaningless to him. If it all would just blur together into endless weeks, months and years, and if he would at some point not be able to answer the question as to how old he was anymore.

Then, Henry had realized it was utterly pointless and a waste of his thoughts to linger on something so conceptual and abstract, and went back to sparring with Charos.

“It... should work. At least somewhat. Though, are you sure you don’t need a handle to hold on?” Teslas asked while he and Henry inspected the result of their work, these last two days.

The exiled prince rolled his eyes at the nibbler. “Handles are for weaklings. I’ll be fine.”

“If you say so”, Teslas grinned. “Well, ready to show Thanatos? You should test it in a safe environment, and maybe above a water body, just in case you DO fall off.”

Henry chuckled. “I won’t FALL OFF. I NEVER fell off a bat before – except on purpose. Now that would be a first I could live without.”

He took up the saddle prototype they had just finished and started making his way out. Fall off... who did Teslas think he was?

“And you are actually serious about this?” The gaze in Thanatos’ amber eyes was still skeptical when Henry showed him the prototype.

“It’ll be great, let’s just test it, okay? You agreed to let me test it!”

“What was I thinking”, Henry heard the flier mumble as he reluctantly let the exiled prince strap the construction around his neck. It looked almost like a broad collar from leather with a surface to sit on and the lever that activated the primary function. “The things I do for you, Henry, never cease to amaze me, truly.”

“Oh, quit whining, it actually looks really neat.” Henry grinned. “And once you see how it works, you’ll love it as much as me.”

“Never”, Thanatos grunted, but let Henry mount up with a sigh.

It felt strange sitting on an artificial surface, instead of on the flier’s fur directly, for the first time, and the exiled prince thought as much as Thanatos would have to get used to this, he would too. He quickly checked the accessibility of the lever and signaled he was ready to begin the test run.

As confident as he had acted in front of Teslas, he was still happy nobody was around to watch them now. If he did end up falling off, he could really live without the mockery of his mice friends.

Thanatos lifted off and soon hovered above the lake, just in case. Henry felt his chest tighten with excitement, as he fumbled with the lever. “You ready?”

“As I’ll ever be”, the flier grunted, and Henry determinately pulled it to the right.

The saddle did exactly what it was supposed to – the whole construction, along with the sitting surface, rotated to the right, at first by exactly ninety degrees, but Henry was so startled he forgot to let go of the lever and the construction rotated again, by another ninety degrees. And it sent Henry, who was not even remotely able to hold on, using only his legs in an upside-down position, face-forward into the lake.

When he broke the surface moments later, snorting and coughing, Thanatos was laughing vigorously. “Maybe you should at least add a handle to hold on!”, he called, finally grabbing his bond by the arm and heaving him out of the water.

Henry, sitting on the beach, looking like a drowned rat, glared at him from beneath the strands of his wet hair, that now reached beyond his shoulders when untied. “Well, MAYBE I SHOULD!”

“Falling off a bat for the first time, really, what a great start to the day this is”, Henry mumbled to himself, angrily pulling his dripping shirt over his head, wringing it out and tossing it onto the beach to dry. “DON’T YOU DARE TELL ANYONE ABOUT THIS, you hear?” He called to Thanatos, who was still chuckling.

“Maybe I won’t, maybe I will. Depends on how much of a brat you are.” For that, Henry started chasing him, swinging his wet shirt, yelling mocking threats.

They spent the next half an hour messing around in a similar manner until Henry’s hair and clothes had dried enough so that he felt ready to go back inside. He took the saddle with him, grumbling he’d add a handle, and maybe something else to help him hold on.

Apparently, it was not as easy as he had thought, staying on a bat while upside down.

Later that day, when it was time to go to bed, Henry and Thanatos were sitting in their designated sleeping cave, but the exiled prince was still sketching around in his mother’s notebook, instead of turning off the lantern, that stood next to him, and going to bed.

“You need to get some sleep. You can finish that later, Henry”, his bond poked him in the side, and Henry grunted. “Hold up, almost done.”

“What are you even sketching?” The flier asked, curiously eyeing the page. While shifting to get a closer look, he accidentally touched Charos, that was leaning against the wall, with a wing, and the huge sword fell over, making a deafening clanking noise.

Henry jumped, dropping the notebook, and rose to lift the sword back up, not without glaring at Thanatos accusingly. The flier just shrugged, but then his attention was captivated by the notebook. “That... is not your hand, is it?” He asked, glancing over the random page that had flipped open when Henry had dropped it.

The exiled prince sat back down and picked up the book. “Did I never tell you? It belonged to my mother.”

Thanatos shook his head and Henry was surprised at how he had forgotten to share this story entirely. He sat so that his bond could see the pages and flipped through them, one by one, showing the flier what his mother had come up with over the course of her using this book.

“I knew your mother was an inventor, your father spoke of her frequently, but I had no idea how brilliant she was.” Thanatos chuckled. “Where did you get this book from?”

Henry sighed. He packed away the notebook and lied down, leaning his head against Thanatos’ back, and told him about his first day of working for Teslas. How he had found out, how he had assumed the worst immediately, and how Teslas had shared with him what he knew of his mother, and given him the notebook to keep.

“Ever since then I draw my own inventions in it. I think my mother would have been happy.” He smiled at the ceiling.

Thanatos was silent for a moment. “I had almost forgotten how I found you packing and crying, back then. It makes sense why you jumped to conclusions, it must have felt like losing your mother for the second time.”

Henry turned and pressed his face into the flier’s fur. “It... it did. I sincerely thought she... she had never even cared about me. But now... Now she is always with me, through mine and Teslas’ inventions, and through this book.”

The flier nodded. “I am sure she would have been proud of you.”

Henry gave a dry chuckle. “Proud? Of a traitor for a son?” But Thanatos silenced him immediately. “Henry, you are so much more than that. Do not let the past weigh you down like this, I speak from experience, you know?”

The exiled prince remained silent, but the flier continued – “I only met her once or twice, but my memory of her is fairly clear. You look a lot like her, you know? Especially when your eyes shine with excitement about something new.”

“Really? I barely even remember her, even though I was eight when she died. She was never at home, and neither was father. I know now that she had a good reason, but still.” Henry hesitated, “You... you knew my father, didn’t you? What... what was he like?”

Thanatos sighed. “I see him in you as well, in a lot of ways. Bold, brave, fierce, up for every challenge, a leader – not afraid to go past his comfort zone and try new things.”

Henry chuckled. “I used to be very against going out of my comfort zone, actually. That only changed when exile forced me so far out of it that I simply decided it doesn’t matter anyway anymore.”

Thanatos grinned. “I know. I still had to deal with that “you” as well, don’t you remember?”

“You mean the “me” you wanted to dump in the Dead Land before he saved your ass from the rats? The “me” that almost starved himself to death before agreeing to try raw fish? The “me” that let the crawlers who were chased by those rats die for their weakness?” Henry elbowed him slightly.

“Exactly that “you”. The snotty prince of Regalia”, the flier extended his wing a little, causing Henry to be flung across the cave. The exiled prince screamed in shock and the flier laughed. “I can sometimes genuinely not believe I put up with your brattiness and obliviousness back then. Like, what in the world was I thinking?”

They both laughed. “You thought I would die two seconds after you left me. And you wanted to avoid any more unnecessary deaths on your conscience.” Henry remembered Thanatos’ words to Hamnet. “That must have been it, at least in those early days.”

The flier nodded. “I thought of leaving you every day, you know? But then I looked at that pathetic pile of misery that you were back then, and I just couldn’t bring myself to.”

Henry elbowed him, fiercely this time, and Thanatos chuckled. “You know, the worst part is, I can not even say you are wrong.” The exiled prince sighed. “I WAS a pathetic pile of misery who needed your routine to even get through the day.”

“I had a feeling”, the flier grinned, and they proceeded to lie in silence for a while.

“You know, I am happy you told me about your mother. It also sheds light on why you and Teslas built such a strong connection so quickly, and why he accepted you as a student back then. He must have done it for her.” Thanatos spoke up again after a while.

Henry nodded. “I’m pretty sure that was why”, he sighed, “I would have told you earlier, I just... forgot, kind of.”

“It’s alright”, Thanatos reassure him.

“Hey, tomorrow we test the saddle with the handle, okay?” Henry grinned. “Teslas and I added it earlier today, and I am itching for another test run. Tomorrow is my free day too.”

Thanatos sighed. “Fine. You know what, fine. Do whatever tests you like, I am tired of fighting because of this.”

Henry jerked up, eyes shining with excitement. “REALLY?!”

The flier rolled his eyes. “Sure. It’s not like I can stop you anyway.”

Henry spontaneously wrapped his arms around his neck. “OH MY GOODNESS YOU ARE THE BEST I LOVE YOU AND I PROMISE IT WILL BE AWESOME BUT YOU ARE THE BEST AND –”

Thanatos interrupted him, chuckling – “Okay, okay, calm down, geez, it’s just a few experiments.”

“No, it’s not”, Henry shook his head, “It’s you, ditching your pride for me, and going out of your comfort zone as much as I have, back when I was still the bratty prince.”

“That’s what you do when you love someone”, Thanatos’ voice was quiet, but his words still painted a smile on Henry’s face. “You do?”

“You’re the closest thing to family that I still have... and had in a long time”, was all the flier said.

“You too”, his bond responded.

But now, fuelled by their conversation, he was way too restless to sleep. “And look, it will be worth it, I promise”, he assured Thanatos. “A saddle that rotates with the rider, imagine the stunts it will allow us. Fighting grounded enemies while sitting upside down will be so much easier, and dodging by rotating too. And the best thing is, you will be able to fly normally. It’s just me who will rotate. Don’t you agree this will be an outstanding gadget if we learn to utilize it?”

“If you and Teslas ever perfect it, and if we master it”, Thanatos responded, “Because as fun as all that sounds when you say it like that – even if the handle works, I’m pretty sure you’re far away from finishing the design. It’ll need work. And once you perfect it, actually learning to utilize it effectively will take months of practice as well. For me and for you.”

Henry sighed. “I know. We’ll probably have to unlearn everything we have practiced in terms of flying together so far, but oh well. It’ll be worth it... don’t you think?”

Thanatos pondered. “If it does work the way you describe it... then yes. That will increase our strength, and most importantly, our unpredictability, in battle significantly.”

“So you’re with me?” Henry grinned.

“Always.”


	20. Word of Mouth

* * *

“Howard, dear, are you sure he said he didn’t want to stay for dinner? He usually does.” Henry heard Susannah’s voice through the door to the main hall in their residence at the Fount.

He clenched his fist, narrowed his eyes, and determinately pushed open the door. “I never said such a thing, actually!”, he called towards Luxa’s aunt, who stood in the middle of the room with her oldest son. Howard was almost a head taller than her, and yet he visibly shrunk a few inches as soon as Henry entered.

“Howard...?” His mother put her hands to her hips. “It is impolite to speak for others like this. He is our guest now like he always is. Please behave yourself.”

Henry had to suppress a chuckle. Howard getting lectured was such a rare occurrence that he decided to treasure every second of it, for as long as it lasted.

“Dinner will be served in around an hour”, Susannah turned towards him, smiling, “I assume you will be leaving after, like always?”

Henry nodded, unable to resist throwing Howard a gloating look. “I’ll tell Thanatos, Cevian and Triax. We will all be happy to attend.”

Susannah threw him a last, sympathetic look. “We will see each other in an hour then.”

Henry turned around, preparing to leave the room, though if his ears could be rotated, they’d be pointed backward, at Howard and his mother, right now. Unfortunately, they left the room pretty quickly as well, without speaking any more, and Henry shrugged and decided to actually go looking for his trading party, to tell them when dinner would be served.

Maybe two more weeks had passed since his and Thanatos’ first failed saddle attempts. They had decided to stay with the mice for a while longer, mainly because Henry had started enjoying these trips to the Fount more than he probably should. Not even necessarily because he was extremely attached to the people here, but because it was human contact – in general – that he had missed more than he had realized.

The gossip around their household was almost worse than what he remembered from Regalia’s palace, and he relished every second of it, every juicy detail he could discover, every secret, every scandal. With the five kids, it was never boring too, and the visits here had soon become his favorite thing to do, except for maybe working with Teslas.

Half an hour later, he had informed Thanatos and the two nibblers, Cevian and Triax, who had accompanied them, that they were invited to stay for dinner, like usual.

Then, he went back to the main residence, even though he wasn’t exactly supposed to wander around in there unsupervised. But so far, Henry had always managed to find a believable excuse, the few times when he had actually been caught. And he had learned very early throughout his childhood, that, if you wanted to hear gossip, the best time to do that was when nobody knew you were around.

He had spent many days here as a child and knew the layout of the residence pretty well. There were no secret tunnels, like in the palace in Regalia – at least from what he knew – but a whole lot of little-used halls, that were normally empty.

Now, he was strolling through one of them, close to the main hall, when he suddenly heard the steps of a different person coming down the hall. Henry quickly dove into a room that he heard was empty, and praised his new echolocation skills and how easy they made it to spy on people.

From the steps, it sounded like a teenage girl, and when he peeked through the curtain, he saw it was Stellovet, who seemed to be in quite a hurry. Her hair, that she usually put a lot of time and effort into, creating beautiful and intricate hairdos, was now loosely cascading down past her waist, and she held the seams of her long yellow dress up, to be able to walk faster without tripping.

She soon entered the main hall, that was connected to this hall through a doorless stone arch, and Henry heard her voice – but not spiteful or bratty as he expected, but rather abashed – “Dad, mom, what did you need me for?”, she addressed her parents, who apparently both were in the room.

Henry had to focus his hearing, but from where he sat, behind the curtain, he was able to understand everything said in the room. He grinned, internally rubbing his hands in anticipation of the drama. Oh, how much he had missed being around humans. Other species were not nearly as interesting, for the lack of gossip and scandals alone.

“Stellovet, we need to talk to you about your behavior around the Death Rider, recently.” That was York’s voice, and he sounded less than pleased. Susannah’s husband was, in regards to Henry, more like Howard. He usually put on a friendly front before him, but the exiled prince had often listened in on him complaining how “inadequately comfortable the outcast seemed to be getting in our home, recently”, to all sorts of people.

“Oh Stellovet, dear, how are you even looking”, that was Susannah, Henry heard her take a few steps, he focused and visualized her standing before her daughter now, fumbling around at her dress and hair, “you are usually so mindful of your appearance, what in the world has gotten into you today?”

Stellovet shifted uncomfortably. “It’s not like anyone is around to see me anyway. And why are we talking about the Death Rider now?”

Henry realized she had not seen him yet, and wondered where she had been all day. Usually, she was one of the first people to greet him.

“Because he arrived here, earlier today, while you were out at the lake with your teachers. He will be attending dinner in around twenty minutes”, York informed his daughter, who audibly gasped.

“WHAT?! He is here, and you don’t even TELL ME?” Henry had to suppress a chuckle.

“Actually, I specifically told your teachers to take you out today, in order for you to not embarrass yourself and our entire family again, by acting like you normally do, around him”, her father continued.

“We get that all you children are fascinated when an outcast like him, with exciting stories, comes here, but you are old enough now to not act on it, like your brother”, Susannah added.

“Yes, just look at your brother, he is always the epitome of dignity.” York sounded pleased with Howard. Maybe, Henry thought, nobody had told him yet that his son had tried telling Susannah that Henry would not stay for dinner, earlier.

Stellovet turned a little, the exiled prince assumed she was irritated. “Yes, I know, dad. Howard is perfect – how dare I forget.”

“Mind your tone, young lady!” Her father wasn’t having any of it, “And for the love of everything, please stop swooning over him like you always do, it will do you no good, and it is an embarrassing kind of behavior for a girl your age. You will turn fifteen in a few weeks, only a year from now you will be an adult. This is very inappropriate behavior for a daughter of my house, and I will not tolerate it any longer.”

Surprisingly, Stellovet remained silent, and York continued – “If you can not restrain yourself, I will personally take care to send you away from now on, whenever he comes here”, quieter he added, “Perhaps we should send note that we wish for less frequent supply deliveries altogether. He’s been coming here far too often these last couple weeks if you ask me.”

Suddenly, Henry heard a different set of footsteps, approaching from the other side. He recognized Howard, and Stellovet’s brother awkwardly stopped, when he realized his father was in the middle of lecturing her.

“Howard, is that you? Would you please go fetch your other siblings for dinner? Stellovet will join you shortly after she has tidied herself up”, Henry heard Susannah address her son and Howard voiced an approving “Right away, mother.”

“You are dismissed as well, Stellovet”, York added, “But heed my words, will you? I expect impeccable behavior from you during dinner.”

Henry heard no response, her steps simply moved away towards the door. He heard the suppressed anger and frustration in them clearly.

“And what are you gawking at?” She hissed at Howard, who had apparently waited for her in the hall.

“Nothing, hey, Stello, wait a moment!” He called after her, and Henry heard their steps move away, in the direction of the living quarters.

He quietly left the room he had been hiding in and followed them, as quietly as he could. When he could hear their voices again he stopped, hiding behind a stone ledge this time. They were now standing in the middle of the living room the kids shared, to all sides of it were their bedrooms.

“What is it, Howard – I have to “tidy myself up for dinner”, or mom will lose it again!” Her voice was seething with suppressed anger.

“Stello, what was that about, in there? They seemed angry with you.” Howard’s tone was concerned. “Are you in trouble?”

Stellovet snorted. “Apparently, dad doesn’t like it when I’m too friendly with the Death Rider. “Inappropriate behavior for a girl your age” – my ass!”, she called, and Henry had to suppress a chuckle.

“Stellovet, language!”, her brother heeded, and she scoffed. “You’re not any better than them, you know? Do you have ANY IDEA how much harder you make things for me – HOWARD? “Oh, but your brother is so perfect” here, and “your brother did excellently” there, everyone LOVES you, EVERYONE – mom, dad, now even stupid Luxa, but who’s really surprised at that, she’s as PERFECT as you, after all!”

Stellovet’s voice had become louder and louder throughout her little monologue, and Henry heard Howard’s voice sounded more concerned than before – “That, that is not true, Stello, I am not perfect, and neither is Luxa. Why do you always judge her like you do, you barely even know her!”

He chuckled a little, “I used to think she was a brat myself, but then we got to know each other better, and I really think it was just Henry being a bad influence on her before. She is a good person, Stellovet, and maybe if you tried to get to know her as well, you’ll find that yourself.”

Henry grit his teeth. I wasn’t a BAD INFLUENCE on Luxa, he thought, all I was, was a hundred times more fun than YOU.

Stellovet crossed her arms. “Okay, then go and be super friendly with her, like you are now, because she is so much fun and all. Go on your stupid quests together, enjoy yourselves and become BEST FRIENDS for all I care, while I sit here at home, fulfilling MOM’S expectations of me, which are essentially summed up by “be a good girl, look pretty and get married as soon as possible, so that we are finally RID of you”, sound good?” Henry heard a suppressed cracking in her voice towards the end, like she was trying desperately not to cry.

“Hey, hey – who says we want to be rid of you?” Howard sounded soothing now, as well as still highly concerned. “You are my sister, Stello, and yes, you are... difficult, sometimes, but I will still love you always. And so will mom and dad, I promise.”

Henry heard her sob now. “Say that all you want, but you have no idea how it’s like to be me. You can do no wrong in mom’s and dad’s eyes, the perfect firstborn, the positive example for everything. The twins are twins – everyone loves twins, and Chim – Chim is just the little cute sweetheart that we all adore. But me? What am I, hm? Just the bratty, unimportant middle child that nobody wanted anyway.”

“That is NOT TRUE!” Henry saw him grab her arm now. “I... I did not know you felt this way. I know mom and dad have high expectations of you, but they do of me as well. I can do a lot wrong in their eyes too, believe me. Especially in dad’s. Why do you think I try to be so perfect always? Because it is what’s expected of me.”

Stellovet was silent at that, and Howard continued – “But please never assume we don’t want or love you, Stello. Because we do.”

She remained quiet for another moment, before finally speaking up – “I don’t believe a single word you are saying. It was you calling me wretched and bad to Luxa, She told me the last time she was here. Or was she lying?” Her voice sounded challenging.

Howard sighed. “No... she wasn’t lying. Look, I... I am sorry for saying that, but... maybe do yourself a favor and think about what caused me to say it. If you want to be perceived as nice, you have to act nicely too. Luxa and Nerissa have done you no harm, and they are good people, both of them. If you give them a chance, maybe you’ll find you have more in common than you think – now that Henry is gone.”

Stellovet hesitated for a second. “G... gone? What do you mean gone – isn’t the word you were looking for “DEAD”?”

She almost sounded agitated about it, and Henry furrowed his brows, pondering on a reason for her to defend him.

Howard was apparently as confused as the exiled prince. “Well... yes... but, what difference does it –”

His sister interrupted him. “DO NOT SPEAK ILL OF THE DEAD!”, she called, audibly distressed.

Howard was even more confused now. “But... didn’t you yourself call him a rat in front of Luxa, almost a year ago?”

“ONLY I CAN BADMOUTH HIM GOT THAT?!”, she screamed and ran for it, apparently to her room, Henry heard the flapping of a curtain.

Howard remained alone in the living room, shaking his head in disbelief, and the exiled prince heard him snort – “sisters...”

The dinner that followed went without complications, only Stellovet was unusually quiet, but considering what he had overheard earlier, Henry would have been surprised if she had been normal. Howard sat next to her, throwing her concerned glances, but she talked, if at all, only to her governess Daliah, a young woman in her mid-twenties, who was supposed to look after her and care for her education. Hero, Kent, and Chim, at their designated spots, were cheerful as always.

Henry himself was mostly occupied digesting the conversations he had listened in on earlier. The fact that her parents thought Stellovet was too friendly with him, amused Henry greatly. Sure, she was a little over-the-top nice when he was around, and he had further noticed she seemed to always pick out her nicest dresses when he was here, but he found her parents were exaggerating.

Maybe it was just him though, still seeing the bratty kid, that had always bullied Luxa and Nerissa, when he looked at her.

But then again, her conversation with Howard had revealed a completely different side of hers, that she had always hidden very well, throughout their childhood. Henry realized he had never even asked himself why she was the way she was, or what kind of problems she could be facing in her own home. He realized that growing up with Howard as an older brother, and four siblings, could not have been easy.

Still, he found he agreed with Howard – surprisingly enough – just because she had problems herself, it did not give her the right to take them out on others, especially people he cared about. But maybe, he thought, she’s at least not as irredeemable as we all thought.

Well, he almost chuckled, I guess if I can turn from a bratty traitor into an independent, fearless warrior, then there surely is hope for Stellovet too.

After dinner, he was about to gather their things and leave. He had decided to tell Thanatos the gossip he had heard later, even if he would most likely leave a couple things out – the flier was constantly teasing him about Stellovet anyway.

“You got everything?”, Thanatos asked, and Henry nodded. “Let’s leave, I think I had enough human contact for a while.” They both laughed.

They had left the saddle prototype at the colony, for now, it wasn’t ready for the world yet. They still tried to come up with a way to improve the stability, even if Henry hadn’t fallen off again, after their first test run. As of now, both of them agreed they needed to perfect the design before taking it on missions, or really anywhere.

Then, he suddenly saw two people, a bigger and a smaller silhouette, running towards them from the residence.

“Hey, wait – are you leaving already?” Henry recognized Stellovet’s voice and grinned. “Escaped your parents to say goodbye?”

She blushed a little and shoved Chim, who turned out to be the smaller silhouette, towards them. “Not just me, she... she had a gift for you, that she didn’t want to give you in front of our parents. Or they would start lecturing her about being “too friendly” with you as well.”

“They did that to you?”, he acted surprised and kneeled down before Chim. “Well, what’cha got there?”

The little girl grinned. She leaned forward, whispering – “It was actually Stello who dragged me out here, it’s her who wanted to say bye, not me. I already did!”

Henry grinned at her. The family had officially seen them off together, after dinner, so she was technically not wrong.

“But pshh, don’t tell her I told you, or she won’t let me play with her dolls for an entire week!”, Chim added, and Henry chuckled – “You still play with dolls, Stellovet?”

The teenage girl blushed more, throwing her little sister a death glare. “NO, I do NOT! Whatever she told you... SHE IS LYING! I AM NOT A LITTLE GIRL ANYMORE!”

Henry chuckled. “Whatever you say!”, then he turned back to Chim. “Your sister said you had a gift for me?”

The little girl nodded and pulled out a piece of paper. “I made it for you. So that, if mom and dad ever forbid you to come back, you don’t forget us, okay?”

Henry unfolded it and saw it was a drawing. Thanatos glanced over his shoulder and grinned – “Aww, that is sweet of you. I LOVE the way you drew your siblings.”

“Thanks Than!”, she called and hugged his face. Only Chim was allowed to abbreviate his name, Henry thought and grinned, before being caught in a hug from the little girl as well.

“Well, he is not wrong” Henry grinned while staring at the picture after she had let go of him. Chim was six, and her drawing was not the best, skill-wise, but it surely was an accurate representation of her family. Howard was so tall, his legs were the entire length of Stellovet, whose hair reached to the floor, and who wore a beautiful, flowing gown.

Hero and Kent were almost identical, the only difference being, Hero’s hair was long and she wore a dress. Chim herself had a wide grin plastered over her face, and she was standing next to Henry, who wore an almost evil smirk and, of course, the eyepatch and his fur coat. Behind him was Thanatos, spreading his wings. She had drawn the exiled prince holding Charos, which was as tall as himself.

The other arm, Henry saw, he had around Stellovet, and when he asked Chim about it she just grinned and shrugged. “She would like that”, was all she said, and Henry and Thanatos both broke into vigorous laughter.

“I would like what?”, Stellovet asked, and Henry quickly hid the picture, winking at Chim. If he showed her sister, she’d surely punish her for drawing it, and out of all the Fount-siblings, he had recently found Chim was his favorite.

“Well, it was nice seeing you two, but we really have to get going now”, he grinned and tipped an imaginary hat to them. Stellovet threw him a big smile, and he inevitably asked himself if her obvious crush on him would disintegrate instantly, the moment she found out he was Henry, and not some mysterious, powerful, alluring stranger.

Then again, Henry pondered, there was the whole thing with her “Only I am allowed to badmouth him” – claim. Whatever that was supposed to mean.

“Back to the colony!” Henry called, while Thanatos had already lifted off. He leaned back casually on his back, letting his feet dangle next to the flier’s face.

“Back... to the colony.” The flier sounded not nearly as enthusiastic as his rider.

“What do you say – do they look like they want to be ground to dust?” Henry whispered to Thanatos’ ear, while they were cowering on the side of the arena filled with rats.

The familiar anticipation of battle overcame him, and Charos in his hand itched for a fight.

“Oh absolutely. You?”, his flier answered, and Henry felt him tense up in preparation for the battle.

“Always.”

Nearly two months had passed since the two had finally left the nibbler colony, to go back to the Dead Land. It had been a sad goodbye, but they had all known extending their stay even more was not an option.

Henry knew he would miss the nibblers, and he would miss the missions to the Fount, but life went on. Maybe, if he didn’t show up for a while, York would stop whining about him being there too much either. And for all it was worth, he would still have Chim’s drawing of them to cherish.

As they had no idea where Longclaw had disappeared to, the Dead Land had been a good place to start. And fighting in an arena seemed like the most reasonable occupation, while no mercenary jobs were coming in. So, they had returned to the place where it had all began – to the arena run by Splintleg, where they had been forced to fight Sizzleblood, more than a year ago.

The scarred gnawer had been extremely surprised to see them, after a year, and almost not recognized them either. When Henry had announced they wished to become champions, he had been even more surprised. But after a swift demonstration of their abilities – and a little bit of threateningly holding Charos to his throat – he had agreed fairly quickly.

He had even offered to conveniently forget that Cleaver had accused Henry of killing Gorger, all those months ago, and Henry told him to just introduce them as the Death Rider – to avoid any more unwanted recognitions.

Ever since then they had fought and won maybe twenty battles in his arena, over the course of the last two months. And when they weren’t fighting, they were doing jobs or experimenting more with the saddle. They had still not found a suitable solution for the stability problem, mainly because they had focused on other things recently.

They were still determined to track and bring Longclaw to justice, Henry had to admit one of the reasons why he had insisted on coming here was because he had hoped they would at some point be able to pick up a trace of their enemy, through one of Splintleg’s visitors.

“... against our one and only flier-human duo champion, THE DEATH RIDER!” Henry heard Splintleg’s voice, and Thanatos lifted off, flying a circle around the arena, accompanied by cheering.

The exiled prince felt the familiar sensation of power and the approval of the audience fill him and grinned. It was so different, he realized, from when he had fought in Longclaw’s arena alone. Back then, it had been a means of escaping his own screaming thoughts, and maybe a way to override emotional with physical pain – now their only reasons were the rewards, the glory – and the heck of it.

The time of adventures wasn’t over, was Henry’s last thought, like I had feared back then. They had only just begun. Then he stopped thinking – and fought.

This battle was won swiftly, like most others, and as payment, Splintleg awarded them a stack of furs and leather. Henry rejoiced, he thought it gave him the materials to work on the saddle more.

“I don’t think this made it any better, but if you insist... I told you I won’t argue because of this anymore.” Thanatos rolled his eyes as they flew out onto the waterway.

Recently, they had conducted all their saddle experiments over the ocean, ever since Henry had fallen off during their first attempt, Thanatos had insisted on it. For safety reasons.

“Well, at least you’re keeping to your word”, Henry muttered, strapping on the belt that connected to the saddle now. “Look, now I am as tied up as you are, does that make you feel any better?” They both laughed.

But when Henry tried out the rotating function again, he discovered the belt was not enough. It was his legs, that were dangling all over the place and hindering both him and Thanatos from moving properly.

“How do I fix this?”, he muttered angrily, trying to untie the mess that faulty planning of strings had gotten him into.

“You need to find a way to lock your legs in place. I don’t think me or you will be able to work with a rotating saddle unless that is taken care of”, Thanatos said, while landing close to the cave where they had slept, ever since they had come back to the Dead Land.

“Yes, yes, but how?” Henry had finally managed to get out of the mess of strings and sat down, frustratedly fetching his sketchbook. “I want this to work so badly, you know?”

“I know, I know. It will... eventually”, Thanatos muttered, before flying out to catch fish for dinner.

He had just gotten back, with four big fish in his mouth, when Henry suddenly heard a noise. The flier had noticed it as well, but before Henry was able to fetch a weapon, he saw it was only a crawler, hiding behind one of the rocks that guarded the entrance to their cave.

“Hey, you, are you looking for us?”, Thanatos asked while approaching him cautiously.

The crawler came out from behind the rock and only now, Henry saw he was carrying a scroll of leather. “I have a message for the Wielder of Light and the Rider of Death, I have a message. It is urgent, it is.”

Henry frowned, taking the scroll from the crawler. “Who sent you?”

“The humans from the Fount, the humans”, he responded, and Henry exchanged confused glances with Thanatos. Why would York and Susannah send for him, when they had some sort of problem?

He unrolled the scroll eagerly and started reading. The message was short and to the point, and Henry’s expression became more and more dire the further he read. When he had finished it, he let the scroll snap shut. “We need to leave. Now.”

Thanatos threw him a confused glance. “What does it say?”

Henry stood up already, readying himself to depart. “It’s Longclaw.”


	21. Quest

“They came out of nowhere”, Dalia was almost crying. Her entire body trembled even though the entire thing had happened two days ago.

Luxa’s face was still as stone. She and Gregor were sitting next to Howard, Hero, Kent, and Chim, and she was firmly gripping Hazard’s hand.

When Henry had arrived back at the Fount, around a day after he had received the letter, he had been surprised to find them there. Luxa had explained, she had planned to show Gregor and Hazard around more, especially the planes around the lakes, that surrounded the settlement. They had already been at the Fount, when it had happened, and had postponed their departure back to Regalia immediately, that had been scheduled for today, upon hearing of the incident.

Susannah was visibly shaken as well, York had an arm around her, his face was tense and worried. He was probably blaming himself, Henry thought, after all, he had most likely been the one who had sent Stellovet out with Dalia in the first place.

The governess cleared her throat. Henry noticed she was staring at the floor – she was probably feeling as guilty as him. “There... there were three rats, they surrounded us before we even knew what was happening. Tyler and Orin were dead within seconds, the guards, that were supposed to protect us.”

She started kneading her hands. “Their leader stepped forward towards me, while the other two restrained... Stellovet and dragged her off. She was screaming and kicking, but...” Dalia’s voice broke and she started sobbing, “the... the leader grabbed me and... and...” she entirely burst into tears. Howard, wearing a grave expression, stood up and put a hand on her shoulder. “It is not your fault, Dalia, please speak on.”

It took her a second to gather herself before she was able to continue – “He grabbed me and... and told me they would send me back, to deliver a message to you”, she looked at York and Susannah, “and you as well, Your Majesty. They... they said they knew you were here, and that I should warn you.” Luxa’s face grew even more dire when Dalia addressed her.

The governess cleared her throat – “If you ever wish to see your cousin... and your daughter again”, she first glanced at Luxa, then at Stellovet’s parents, “you are to send...”, her gaze met Henry, “the Death Rider to the gnawer arena at the outskirts of the Firelands. If you instead alerted the army, she would die within hours, he threatened.” Dalia wiped her eyes, “He further said I should mention that...”, she hesitated, still looking at Henry, “Longclaw sends his regards. Whatever that means to you.”

Henry and Thanatos exchanged glances. They had been the ones who had wanted to hunt Longclaw down, but instead, he had turned it around and caught up to them. They had waited too long, and now, others had to suffer because of their feud.

Henry stepped forward. “It means a lot, actually. This guy, Longclaw, he’s... an old friend of ours, who we should have taken out long ago, but now he’s dragged all of you into our feud. We apologize for that.”

It hadn’t been easy to say this, but one gaze at York and Susannah, another at huddled together Hero, Kent, and Chim – and a last at trembling Dalia were enough to make him wish he had slit Longclaw’s throat back in the ice caves.

York raised his voice, it was drenched with concern and pain. “I have heard that name before... Longclaw. Wasn’t he a general of Gorger’s, whom the king banished for trying to usurp him?”

Henry nodded. “But seems like exile has only made him stronger. Last time we saw him, a few months ago, he had a whole armada of followers. We did kill most of them by collapsing the cave that they were in, but it seems like he has already regained his strength. I am certain he is out for the crown of the gnawers, as certain as I am that he wants our heads on poles in front of his new palace.” He exchanged a grim look with Thanatos.

“You mean to say, this whole fiasco with kidnapping Stellovet is a trap... for you?”, Luxa suddenly spoke, “That seems a little far-fetched, don’t you think? Why doesn’t he target you directly? Why take the detour through... my family?” Henry was barely able to hold her firm, inquiring gaze.

“I... I have no idea. Maybe he believes we are too elusive for a direct attack, and... I mean, how else would he lure us in? It’s not like there are many things he could use against us... the few non-human friends we have are well-protected”, he thought of Teslas and the nibbler colony in the jungle, the rats would have to pass the Vineyard of Eyes to get to them.

Then there was Kismet, but he thought it was easier to traverse the Vineyard then to mess with her. “And then there is you all”, he threw Luxa a glance, “The... how did you call it, Gregor?”, he pondered for a second, “the questers.”

Luxa silently stared at him for a second, then she shrugged. “I suppose you will walk into his trap then. To save my... cousin.”

Henry exchanged another glance with Thanatos. “We are not only doing this for Stellovet”, he decided, “this is also our chance to finally get Longclaw. The world would be better off without him.”

“Well, do it for whatever reason you want, I am doing it for my sister”, a different voice suddenly spoke and all heads turned in Howard’s direction. He had stepped forward, regarding the Death Rider quickly. “I am coming with you.”

Henry had already opened his mouth to protest when York addressed his son. “I wanted to suggest you accompanying them myself, thank you, Howard. Please make sure your sister is brought home safely.”

Henry’s head jolted in his direction, mouth agape. “B...but...”, but Howard ignored him and turned to Luxa. “Don’t you and the warrior want to join us as well? We could use all the help we can get.”

Henry blinked a few times, trying to process that if he wouldn’t do something now, his revenge mission against Longclaw would turn into a full-fledged mini-quest.

Luxa shifted in her seat nervously. “I... didn’t this Longclaw say to not alert Regalia?” It was obvious she did not want to risk her life for Stellovet, who had bullied her in the past. Not that Henry could really blame her.

But then, a different, tiny voice spoke. “This girl... is she our family?” Hazard was squeezing her hand, looking up at her with his emotional, green eyes.

Luxa stared at him for a second, unable to answer. Howard did for her – “You... yes, you both are related to her. To us. And besides, he only warned of sending the army, not the future queen herself.”

“Then you should go help save her”, the little boy continued, “as you would save me. You... would save me, wouldn’t you?”

“Of course”, Luxa’s voice was breaking, she threw a last glance at Hazard, then looked up at Howard. “Fine. Gregor and I will come.”

The Overlander next to her jolted around, looking like he wanted to say “I never consented to that!”, but when he saw Luxa’s pleading eyes, Gregor sighed. “Fine. Boots is in Regalia anyway, with mom, and... this, this won’t take longer than like a few days, will it?” He eyed Henry.

The exiled prince pondered, “The arena... that is in the uncharted land east of the jungle, I know my way around there fairly well. It’s maybe two, three days if we fly, depending on how many breaks your fliers need and what route we decide on.”

“In the uncharted land...”, Luxa murmured, “Can you lead us?”, and Henry nodded, “I can. And I will.”

Howard furrowed his brows, mumbling something about how it was madness to follow the lead of an outcast, and that into unknown territory, but he was clearly overruled.

Then, someone else cleared her throat suddenly. “I will come too. This whole fiasco wouldn’t have happened, hadn’t I taken Stellovet out. Had I... protected her better.” All eyes were now on Dalia, who had spoken and Stellovet’s parents exchanged glances.

“It is decided then”, York concluded, “go will the Death Rider, Howard, Luxa, Gregor, Dalia – and their fliers, Thanatos, Ares, and Aurora, I assume? My son has no bond anymore, neither does Dalia, but three fliers will surely suffice.”

“The less people the better, actually”, Henry muttered, but nobody took the hint. He sighed – this was just fantastic. Now he feared he would have to babysit a whole party of people who traversed the lands for the first time, and would surely act as a trouble magnet, as usual.

“Come, Death, we should decide on a route”, he poked Thanatos. “You others go pack... if you really need to all come...” He glanced at Howard, but Stellovet’s brother didn’t even notice. He was already shoving Gregor and Luxa out of the room, to prepare for the trip.

Gregor fumbled around with the straps of the backpack he had been given. This time, he hadn’t had the opportunity to look through the museum in Regalia to prepare for the journey. All he had was a singular flashlight with two batteries, that he had packed for the trip to the Fount, and the small one Mrs. Cormachi had given him, around a year ago.

Gregor sighed. He was just happy he wouldn’t have to explain this trip to his mom. She was safely in Regalia – well, as safe as she could be, with the plague still in her system. And while he usually disliked being separated from Boots, now she was with his mom, so it was alright.

The plague... he wondered when she’d finally be rid of it. Gregor felt like an eternity had passed since she had last been home, although if it had not even been a year. Still... a year without his mom at home was a year too much, he thought.

He was over the moon that Ares was finally out of the hospital though, even strong enough to come with them on this trip. Gregor still vividly remembered the image of Ares that had made him throw up, back when he had first seen him in the hospital. He had had almost given up hope, but Ares had pulled through. Gregor smiled, of course, he had.

“Are you coming? The Death Rider called, he said he wanted to discuss the route with us”, Luxa suddenly stood in the doorway to the room he had been sleeping in, over his visit at the Fount.

Gregor sighed. “Why did you even drag me into this? Like, why... why are we going on this trip at all?” He furrowed his brows. Gregor clearly remembered Howard’s sister, how she had made that remark about Henry to Luxa. “You don’t even like Stellovet, do you?”

It wasn’t like he wanted her to die or suffer by the claws of the rats, but he thought the Death Rider and Howard could just as well go save her on their own.

Luxa sighed. “I... How would I have explained refusing to help save someone from my family to Hazard?”

“Not all family is good family though. We can be related to someone bad, too.” He primarily thought of Henry and his betrayal.

Luxa sighed, apparently she had gotten the hint. “I know. But...”, she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, “at some point... I realized I had lost so much of my family that I decided I did not want to lose any more.”

Gregor was silent at that. He suddenly remembered how many people she had lost already, her parents, Hamnet... and Henry. It was perfectly understandable that she would try to hold on to anyone who was left, be they mean like Stellovet.

“Besides, if I understood the Death Rider correctly, this Longclaw could be a dangerous future enemy. If you have truly averted the Bane’s fate of becoming the new king by sending him to Ripred, maybe the world would have Longclaw take his place. I must do everything in my power to avoid that, I have to protect my people.” She sounded grave serious as she tugged at the golden ribbon around her head.

Gregor sighed. He understood her decision, at least to an extent. Though he still wanted to ask why she had dragged HIM into the quest, he decided to remain silent for now. He saw the worry in her eyes and thought she had enough problems already.

“Hey, it’ll be fine, okay?” He carefully put a hand on her shoulder. “We’ll get through this. We got through everything so far, didn’t we?”

She threw him a short smile. “Yes. We did. Thank you for... coming with me, too. I realize you did not make that decision yourself.”

Gregor shrugged, pretending to be fine with it. “Eh, it’s whatever. I can’t just send you away with a bunch of strangers, even if Howard is there, can I now?”

Luxa looked up. “Do you not trust the Death Rider?”

“Do you?”, Gregor asked, after some hesitation. Luxa averted her eyes. “I... I do not want to. I have no reason to. I mean”, she hesitated, “we do not even know his real name. But strangely enough, I found that I do.”

“I think he’s a good guy”, Gregor said, hand still on her shoulder, “He saved me and Twitchtip, back on the waterway, remember? And he did it without even knowing us or having any reason besides saving a life. A bad person wouldn’t do that, don’t you think?” Gregor suddenly remembered what she had disclosed to him in the jungle, how he reminded her of someone she... used to know, like she had said.

Luxa hummed approvingly, before turning around. “They will be waiting for us.” Gregor nodded and they stepped out of the room, starting to walk towards the main hall.

“Alright, after some consideration, Death and I have agreed on a route that should be safe. Should be, because what is really safe, here in the Underland.” The Death Rider grinned a little, before unrolling a big map across the table in the main hall. Gregor had to suppress an eye-roll. The outcast was not wrong.

They were all standing around the map now, the space around the table was so crowded, Gregor felt Luxa’s shoulder touching his on the left, and Ares’ fur brush his right side. On Luxa’s other side were Aurora and Dalia, next to Ares stood Howard and Thanatos, the Death Rider in the middle.

The outcast now took out some sort of pencil, leaned over the table and drew an “x” on a spot beyond the map, somewhere east of the Fount. It lied behind the jungle, apparently, and Luxa asked “Will we have to cross the jungle to get there?”, but he shook his head.

“Death and I agree that it is safer to travel on the outskirts of the Firelands. We can follow the border of the two lands almost exactly until we reach this tunnel here”, he drew a line, leading away from a different “x” he had marked, south of the arena.

“The “x” here marks the citadel, a crawler colony we know fairly well, and the line leading away from it is a big tunnel called Path of Styx. It leads further into the Firelands, but it has many side-entrances and -exits. Instead of taking the detour through the citadel, we enter it through a passage about here”, he drew a shorter line, about almost exactly where the Path of Styx crossed from the designated Dead Land territory into the Firelands.

“And that tunnel is safe?” Howard raised an eyebrow.

“Fairly. For Underland-standards.” The Death Rider grinned. “I mean, I’ve traversed it many times, with and without Thanatos. We’ll be fine. Besides”, he raised an eyebrow on Howard himself, “it’s not like you HAVE to come.”

Howard was silent at that, and the outcast turned back to the map. “We can fly from here to the Path of Styx in one go, it’ll take a few hours but the way is fairly safe. From then on, things get a little tricky.”

He explained that the Path of Styx itself was big enough for the bats, but the side tunnel, they would have to exit through, was fairly narrow. “The fliers won’t fit, especially Ares and Death. But the pass is not long, that is narrow. Maybe half an hour on foot. We will have to carry them. Just be ready for that.”

Luxa and Gregor exchanged glances. “Is it not easier to take the long way around?”, she finally asked, eyeing her bond Aurora, who uncomfortably shifted at the thought of being carried.

“Is it so bad?”, Gregor whispered to Ares, and his bat shook his head. “It is unfamiliar, that is all. But it depends much on how you carry us.”

“It would cost us an additional day”, the Death Rider said. “We’d have to take the detour through the entire Path of Styx to the citadel. I assume we do not want this trip to take any longer than absolutely necessary?”

Gregor shifted nervously. He definitely didn’t like the idea of an avoidable detour. “Is there any way to carry the bats comfortably?”, he asked.

The outcast nodded. “I have already asked Susannah and York to provide us with foldable litters, the fliers should be perfectly fine.” He threw Thanatos a glance.

“And from then?” Howard asked. The Death Rider turned back to the map. “There is a lake at the end of that passage, we will make camp for the night there. The next day, we should reach the arena in maybe half an hour’s flight. But I assume you all want to be refreshed when facing the enemy, and the lake is the safest place to camp around there. If you don’t disturb the pinchers, that have their territory on the other side of it, that is.”

Ares must have noticed Gregor’s confused face and whispered “Pinchers. Some call them... lobsters, I believe. They are usually reclused, they aren’t hostile per se, but they don’t like intruders.”

Gregor started kneading his hands. Great – giant lobsters too, now. What would be next? Snails? Scorpions? Dung beetles?

The Death Rider asked the bats if they wanted to depart right away or get some rest first. Ares, Thanatos, and Aurora said they were perfectly fine, so he suggested the humans slept during the flight.

Gregor helped load the food, they would take, into two big backpacks, as well as the bags tied around Thanatos’ lower body. “That’s a useful contraption”, he commented to the Death Rider, who was staring at the map again.

He grinned. “Wait until you see what we are working on at the moment. It’s not fleshed out yet, but soon.”

Gregor smiled, “I guess I’ll see soon then”, left him to his thoughts and approached Ares, after having heaved one of the bags onto his back, together with Dalia. “I’ll be riding with you if you don’t mind. Howard will ride with Luxa”, she addressed his bat.

Gregor exchanged glances with Ares. “You are welcome to do so”, the big black bat said, and Gregor and Dalia mounted up.

He had not exchanged many words with the young woman yet, in truth, he had been introduced to her once, before today, and that had been it. Gregor thought she was maybe nineteen or twenty, short and somewhat delicate looking, but quite pretty. Her hair was tied to a braid that was fastened around her head into an intricate-looking updo.

But now that Gregor saw her up-close, he couldn’t help but notice the big, purple circles around her eyes and realized she wasn’t just lean, but extremely skinny, to the point where it looked unhealthy.

Despite how bad she looked, she had thrown him a big smile, and he wondered if Stellovet’s abduction had been harder on her than she let on.

Gregor glanced over to Aurora and saw Luxa tug at her sword, and Howard sorting through a medical kit. He had not had the opportunity to talk to him much, over the last months, but his mom, who had gotten to know him during their shared stay at the hospital had said, he had talked about becoming a doctor.

When Gregor eyed Howard now, he clearly saw the marks the plague had left and understood why he wanted to make helping the sick his life’s duty, after having almost died to a disease himself. “Maybe you’ll be a doctor too, someday”, his mom had said, and Gregor had only shifted uncomfortably. He had not even remotely considered what he wanted to be when he grew up. He always felt like he already had a job – warrior.

But someone with any kind of medical expertise would be useful on a quest, Gregor thought, and found he was happy Howard had at least found his true calling through the plague.

Soon, Ares and Aurora had lifted off, after Thanatos who followed the river for now. Gregor turned to catch a glimpse at Luxa, but all he saw was Howard’s back, as Ares was flying a little behind Aurora.

“So, who is he, the... Death Rider? Do you know him any better than I?” When Dalia addressed him, Gregor almost shrieked. “I... well, he’s... uh...”, he had never been good at talking to strangers.

After some stammering, Ares saved him by taking over explaining how they had first met the outcast over the waterway. Gregor continued, fired up by his bat, how they had seen him again in the jungle and how he had led them through the Vineyard of Eyes.

When he had finished, Dalia giggled. “He has told us versions of those stories, but I assume yours are more truthful and less – well, exaggerated, if that is the correct word?” Gregor chuckled, he could imagine the Death Rider was the kind of person to exaggerate on their heroic stories.

“But we haven’t seen him in forever, before he suddenly showed up at the Fount, maybe two months ago. He seems so... changed.” Gregor had never dared ask the outcast what had happened, in what had been more than half a year, after he had helped them in the jungle. But when he had first seen him again, two months ago, he had barely recognized him.

It hadn’t just been that his hair was longer and he wore new clothes, it had been... more than that. There was something... new, and almost... dark, in his eye, like it had seen terrible things. Further, Gregor had noticed, now almost every inch of the parts of his skin he had seen was covered in fresh scars. His arms, his hands, and even his face. He had wanted to ask what had happened to him, but he had never found the time or opportunity.

Further, he had not heard him complain about his eye anymore, like he had back in the jungle. Hadn’t he even claimed it rendered him almost unable to fight? Now he carried with him a sword as tall as Gregor himself and even though he had not seen the outcast fight yet, why else would he have it? Had he found a solution to his problem? How and when?

Gregor found himself searching for the Death Rider in the darkness ahead with his eyes, as they flew. He was carrying no light and yet Thanatos seemed to know the way. Gregor himself had also decided to conserve his batteries and trust the bats for now.

He and Dalia agreed to lie down and sleep for a while, eventually, they managed to arrange themselves with each other so that they lied back to back, after a little toing and froing. Gregor fell asleep almost immediately, to his own surprise. But the day had been long and he had been more tired than he had realized, so he dozed off very quickly.

When Gregor opened his eyes again, he was lying on solid ground. In the light of the campfire someone had lit, he saw the silhouettes of Ares and Aurora, pressed together for sleep, against the opposite wall. Thanatos was hanging a little to the right, his eyes were closed too.

The rest of the group had assembled around the fire and when Gregor rose, the Death Rider turned around to him, holding what turned out to be a pot with some sort of stew, that smelled delicious.

“Want any dinner?”, he grinned, and Gregor quickly took a seat between Howard and Luxa. They were already enjoying the meal and Luxa mumbled it was some of the best quest-food she had ever eaten.

“Where... are we now?”, Gregor mumbled, glancing around. They had made camp in some sort of cave, it was fairly big and had several exits. “Are we in that... Path of Styx already?”

The outcast grabbed another plate and brought it to Gregor, along with one for himself. “It lies just ahead, actually. We simply need to follow that tunnel and it will lead us straight in. But the fliers were tired, so I decided to make camp here and continue tomorrow.”

Gregor stared into the tunnel opening, slightly uncomfortable. But the Death Rider interrupted his dire thoughts by asking – “Sandwiches, anyone?”, and everyone immediately helped themselves.

Dalia, who had apparently helped prepare the meal, took the empty sandwich plate to be washed and only then sat down with them. Gregor remembered she was considered a servant, and therefore expected to do the chores, even on quests.

He glanced at Luxa, remembering how Mareth had been the same, both during the first and the second trip, and how she and Henry had not even known how to make themselves a sandwich.

He decided to ask if Dalia needed any help with the dishes after dinner, but the Death Rider took over, he and the young woman collected the empty plates, he stored the food away and she washed them. His sympathy for the outcast rose. At last, someone who is not conceited to the point where he treats servants as lowly, he thought.

“Alright, bedtime everyone! The fliers already lie sleeping, you should follow their lead.” The outcast called, not overly loud, as to not wake the bats, but still commandeering enough. “I will take first watch, later I’ll wake Death to take over for me.”

Gregor looked at him, in the dim light of the fire, and noticed he looked fairly exhausted himself. He had most likely spent the entire flight planning the trip, while Gregor had slept through most of it.

“Hey, I... I could take the watch instead”, he raised his voice and everyone turned to him. Gregor nervously shifted, “I slept through most of the flight, so I’m not tired. You should get some rest yourself.”

The Death Rider eyed him, as did Howard and Luxa, Gregor noticed. He realized they were probably still thinking about how he had fallen asleep during his watch on the waterway. “Hey, I am not tired, I just said. I can –”

Then, someone else interrupted him – “If you take first watch, I take second. I slept a lot as well”, Dalia’s voice was clear and determined.

The outcast put his hands to his hips. “It’s settled then. Gregor takes first watch, Dalia second. Everyone else – to bed. Now.”

“Hey, who made you the boss, actually?”, Howard grumbled, but the outcast shot him a glare. “Your future queen over there asked me to lead you. I took the liberty to interpret “lead” as more than just “show you the way”. If you have any problems with that, over there is the way back”, he pointed towards the exit of the cave. “Be my guest.”

Howard simply shot him a death glare before reluctantly lying down.

“He sure knows how to make Howard hate him”, Luxa chuckled, after the Death Rider had extinguished the fire and lied down next to Thanatos to sleep.

Gregor nodded. “He... he is fairly bossy. But at least he does not consider himself above chores. Dalia would have had to do everything herself, hadn’t he helped, just because she’s a servant.”

Gregor noticed Luxa shifting uncomfortably. “D... do you think I should have offered my help?”

He realized he had made her feel bad and quickly added – “No, I think it’s fine, I just... I just thought it was nice to see he helped her.”

“That is true”, Luxa answered.

They remained silent for a while. “Gregor I’ll go to sleep, okay?”, he heard her voice again, maybe a minute later. “We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow.”

He agreed. “Well, good night then.”

Gregor remained sitting next to her, eyes wide open, determined to stay awake. Maybe, he thought, he could try and practice echolocation. The thought almost made him giggle. As if that would ever work.


	22. Black and White

Henry decided to let the party sleep for almost seven hours. When he himself woke up, he joined Dalia in keeping watch for a while, before they took to preparing breakfast.

Henry fetched his cooking utensils and instructed Dalia on how to make sandwiches. He almost shook his head at the absurdity – back during the quest for the Prophecy of Gray he had refused to even prepare food for himself, now he had switched to babysitting the entire gang. Oh well, times changed, and so did people.

“Thank you for helping me”, he suddenly heard Dalia’s quiet voice and he turned around to her, after having lit the fire. “Don’t mention it. I’m used to caring for myself, so it’s not really a big deal.”

Henry chuckled internally at the face his younger self would have most likely made if he could have heard himself say that now. Henry, the prince of Regalia – cooking. What a miracle.

While working, the exiled prince realized he had never even spoken to Stellovet’s governess properly. “Hey, you like working for York and Susannah?”, he asked, giving her his most enthusiastic smile.

She just shrugged. “It is... alright. Most of the time.”

Only now Henry noticed the purple bags under her eyes and how she was so skinny he could have counted her ribs. An image of himself flashed in his mind, the face in the waterfall. But... Dalia was not an outcast. She had a roof over her head and most certainly enough to eat. He was just about to open his mouth to ask her if something was wrong when a voice interrupted him from behind – “Hey, morning to you. Need any help?”

Luxa was up, grinning at them and Henry grinned back. “Sure. Mind helping Dalia with the sandwiches? She’s never made any before.”

His cousin nodded and cheerfully skipped over to the young woman, who was only slightly taller than her, and they got to work. Soon, Henry woke up the rest of them and handed out breakfast.

“So, what’s the plan for today?”, Howard asked while chewing on his sandwich. “If I remember correctly, you said something about having to carry the fliers.”

Henry nodded. “That’s later though. First, ahead lies the Path of Styx.” He smiled when he remembered how he and Thanatos had first traversed it, in search of Kismet.

The party quickly finished up their meal and got ready to leave. “Hey, listen, if you want, we can switch seats, Howard”, Henry suddenly heard Gregor behind him. Howard snorted, “Why would I want that? And besides, Ares is your bond, is he not? Why would you want to ride on anyone but him?”

Gregor started stuttering and Henry had to suppress a giggle. Because he wants to ride with Luxa, you dimwit, he almost shouted at Howard but held back – barely.

The exiled prince sighed, seemed like he was up. “Howard, don’t be ridiculous. You can ride a flier even if they are not your bond. Besides, I’d like you with me on Thanatos, throughout this next part, there are a few things we need to go over, concerning some details of the trip.”

Henry was staring at Howard, trying to not let it show he was making all of that up on the go. But it was very obvious Howard knew exactly why Gregor wanted to switch and was deliberately trying to prevent him from riding with Luxa. And Henry couldn’t just let him get away with that, could he now? He would come up with SOMETHING to occupy Luxa’s cousin with. Probably.

Howard threw him a very accusing glance, like he had guessed why Henry had done this, but had no choice but to go along with it. “Sure”, he muttered with gritted teeth and grabbed his medical kit and his bag.

From the corner of his eye, Henry saw Gregor throwing him an overjoyed glance, and he tried to wink at him – not an easy task, with just one eye – but he was fairly certain he had gotten the message across. Make it count, he wanted to yell at him, but couldn’t, for obvious reasons.

They had been flying for about half an hour, and so far, Henry had managed to occupy Howard with minor planning problems, like the rationing of food, the order of watch, when they would go to sleep again, and what to do if they encountered pinchers.

Howard seemed to know exactly that it was all a scam to get him to let Gregor have his seat, but he couldn’t do anything, which was most likely the worst part for him.

Henry found it beyond weird, being on a quest again. There was no prophecy or anything this time, but just having Luxa and Gregor and all of them around was... something he had almost not thought would ever happen again, Henry realized.

Last night, Thanatos had mocked how the tables had turned for him – from the baby to the sitter, the flier had said, and they both had laughed. Ripred would not believe his eyes, Henry thought proudly. Well, if he would find out it’s me – which can never happen.

When he finally ran out of planning problems, he started simply asking Howard questions – if he was already stuck on a bat with him, he might as well make the best out of it.

“What’s with the medkit?”, he wanted to know, he didn’t remember Howard ever showing interest in medicine before.

To his surprise, Luxa’s cousin disclosed he had decided to become a doctor, after having survived the plague. “I want to help people who suffer like I have – not that YOU would understand.”

Henry knew it had supposed to be an insult, but he realized Howard wasn’t wrong. “I don’t, but oh well, it’s okay. I’m perfectly fine with being a great warrior instead, though I can totally see you as a doctor.”

“How can you say that, you barely know me!”, Howard claimed, and Henry just shrugged silently. He couldn’t really say anything to that without revealing who he was now, could he?

“So, how did you sleep?” Gregor asked, trying to find a spot to hold on, on Aurora’s back, without compromising Luxa’s personal space. He had most likely stared a little too much, throughout breakfast, until Ares had poked him in the side, asking if he wouldn’t want to switch seats with Howard for the next part of the trip.

He had had not really thought the question through, when he had asked, and hadn’t the Death Rider jumped in, he would have embarrassed himself to the bone, Gregor knew that perfectly well. He had no idea why the outcast had helped him, but he decided he would try to keep that in mind, when – if – he would ever ask him for a favor.

Luxa simply shrugged. “Fine. I sleep best in my own bed.”

Gregor couldn’t really argue with that, after all, he felt the same, even if his bed was squeezed into what had supposed to be a storage room and way too small for it.

They spent the rest of the flight mindlessly chatting about random things, though Gregor enjoyed her company a lot. He always enjoyed Luxa’s company more than that of others, in recent times, and suddenly asked himself why. Sure, they were good friends at this point, but he had many friends in the Underland. Why was she so special?

When the Death Rider finally signaled them to land, Gregor stared into a tiny opening, maybe three or four feet wide. Was that their way?

“From this point on we carry the fliers. I will take the lead, behind me Gregor, then Dalia, Howard, and Luxa will take the rear.” He fumbled around at Thanatos belt pockets and fetched the litters York and Susannah had given them. The bats exchanged nervous glances before lying down at last. “Hey, this is much more pleasant than that thing you used to carry me around with when I had broken my wing”, Thanatos addressed his rider and the outcast elbowed him. “Yea, because I didn’t make this one myself.”

He instructed Howard, who was the only one who would have to help carry two of the bats, to take the back of Ares’ and the front of Aurora’s litter with a hand each and walk sideways when Gregor fetched his flashlight. “Hey, you... might need this, if you’ll walk at the front.” He held it out to the outcast, demonstrating the way it worked.

The Death Rider took it, switched it on and off a couple of times, then grinned at Gregor. “Thanks, this will help. Alright, everyone ready?”, he called, taking up the front of Thanatos’ litter.

They formed a caravan in the previously announced order now, and one by one entered the narrow tunnel. The outcast led the way, shining the flashlight ahead so that they could see.

They had to take a break in between because the bats were heavy and the tunnel at one point became so narrow, Gregor’s elbows grazed both walls when he walked normally. Thankfully, it widened again quickly, and after maybe half an hour of walking, they finally reached the end.

The Death Rider switched off the flashlight and Gregor was about to ask him why, when he walked out into the giant cave that lied at the end of the tunnel himself, and his jaw dropped.

The outcast had talked about a lake, but Gregor had had no idea it would be this beautiful. Apparently, there was a lava pool directly beneath the water and it glowed in bright, beautiful orange.

Everyone was now admiring the lake, Howard had approached to feel if the water was warm, Luxa was kneeling at the shore, staring at the scenery and Dalia’s eyes were wide-open and filled with awe. Only the Death Rider was unphased by the beauty, presumably because he had been here who knew how many times before. He used the time to pack away the litters and fetch their dinner.

“Actually, we’re having fish today. Howard and I agreed we should save the food, considering we have fresh fish right here”, he answered when Luxa asked why he hadn’t opened the supply stash yet. “And don’t worry, I won’t serve it to you raw!”, he laughed, and Luxa giggled too.

Half an hour later, Gregor had eaten one entire grilled fish the bats had caught in the lake. He was stuffed and tired, suppressing a yawn he hoped the Death Rider wouldn’t ask him to keep watch again.

“Don’t worry, we’ll split it between those who haven’t kept watch last time”, the outcast answered when Gregor asked him. “Howard will take first, Luxa second and I’ll take third myself. We’ll let the fliers rest, and in about seven hours we press on.”

“We’re almost there, aren’t we?” Luxa’s voice sounded from behind, and the outcast nodded. “The arena is maybe a half an hour flight from here.”

Great, Gregor thought, today had been a rather peaceful day – for a quest – he could already tell that there would be trouble tomorrow. He sighed while spreading the blanket he had brought, to sleep on, on the floor.

“Not much of a fan of battles?”, a voice asked from behind and he jolted around. There stood Dalia, with a couple dirty plates in her hands, that she was most likely about to wash in the lake.

Gregor chuckled. “Is it weird if I say yes, considering they call me the warrior?”

She smiled at him. “Well, kind of. Though... we often do not choose our fate, instead, it chooses us.”

He suddenly found he liked Dalia more and more. “Tell me about it”, Gregor sighed, then, quickly glancing at the plates, he added – “eh, do you need help with these?”

He looked around, Luxa and Howard were talking at the lake, Ares and Aurora had already cuddled up to sleep and the outcast and Thanatos had spread a map on the floor and were debating something – there was nobody else willing to help her.

Dalia simply shrugged. “If... it is not too much trouble...”

“Not at all”, Gregor rose, “you can’t just do all the work alone all the time. It’s not fair.”

“Oh, I am used to it”, she smiled, but it was a sad smile. “Besides, the Death Rider helped me earlier.”

“I saw. I still don’t think it’s fair. Hey, what do you say, next time we make Howard and Luxa do the dishes while we sit down to talk, okay?” He grinned at her, and she smiled, though averted her eyes, like in shame. “I... I don’t think it’s appropriate to sit on the side while a future queen does your work.”

“And I don’t think it’s APPROPRIATE to let one person do it all, just because they aren’t born special.” There were quite a lot of things Gregor liked about the Underland and its people – but the whole monarchy part wasn’t one of them.

Gregor had just finished the dishes, together with Dalia, when he heard Howard speak to Luxa – “You should really get to bed now, you all should. Tomorrow will be a hard day.”

Gregor saw Luxa nod at Howard and stand up. He had first watch, so he remained at the lake, making it as comfortable for himself as possible, while Luxa took her blanket to the back end, close to Ares and Aurora.

Gregor helped Dalia pack away the plates before he wished her a good night, and took his own blanket to Luxa. There was something he had remembered he wanted to ask her.

“Gregor, aren’t you tired?”, she asked, but her face was friendly.

He shot her a smile while sitting down next to her. “I am. And tomorrow we’ll be fighting, right?”

“Most likely”, she nodded.

Gregor watched the Death Rider, he had at last rolled up the map and lied down himself, leaning his head against Thanatos’ back.

“Do you... know what happened to him?”, Gregor asked Luxa, still staring at the outcast.

“You mean that look in his eye?”, he nodded and Luxa shook her head – “I have no idea. I have not asked him. Maybe Howard knows, or... Stellovet.”

Gregor pondered. “They sure have seen more of him than we, these last months. He... he changed so much, didn’t he? Or is that just me?”

Luxa chuckled. “No, he did. Something must have happened to him, something... bad, worse than bad. You can see those things, you know? Like I see in your face that you have braved the ordeals of three prophecies already. You talk about how he changed, but you changed yourself, from when I first met you. And quite a lot.”

He smiled a little, “I mean, I think we all did. You too. For the better – I mean, not that you were BAD before, it’s just now, you are... eh...” Gregor noticed his face flushed as he started stammering. Dear God, why was he always acting so awkward, lately, whenever Luxa was around?

She only laughed at him. “Thank you. I am quite pleased with how I have changed as well.”

“Yeah”, Gregor chuckled, “I mean, I still remember how you were with Henry. Making fun of the cockroaches and that thing with Boots...” He remembered all-too-well the two had almost acted like bullies, and how Henry had thrown Boots over the edge of the cliff, even if he had known the bats would catch her.

Luxa didn’t say anything, and Gregor suddenly realized he might have overstepped. She probably didn’t like being reminded of Henry at all, and here he was, trying to laugh about how she had been with him.

But Luxa was quiet for an entirely different reason. “I realize that we must have appeared like bad people to you now, and I am not trying to defend everything we did, but... please do not judge us... Henry... only by what you have seen.”

She visibly gritted her teeth, “It is hard for me as well, remembering him for more than what he... did, in the end, but then again, there are so many good things to remember as well.” She looked up at him, smiling sadly, “I try, you know? To remember the good things. Because who else will, beside me... and maybe Vikus?”

Gregor lowered his head. He suddenly thought about how little he had actually known Henry at all. Not even during the quest they had talked much, and shamefully, Gregor realized, Luxa was right – even he, when he thought of Henry, seemed to remember only the bad things. Him attacking Ripred when they first met, despite the orders, later trying to kill him in his sleep and then his betrayal.

Gregor tried, he desperately attempted to prove Luxa wrong, so he tried his best to remember something – anything – good about her cousin. His thoughts went back to when he had talked to Mareth about the two, about when he had found out the rats had killed Henry’s parents like they had Luxa’s.

_ You must not take what they say to heart, _ he heard the soldier’s troubled voice say, _when their parents were killed, Nerissa became as frail as glass, Henry as hard as stone._

He remembered instantly disliking them both less, after having found out what had caused them to become so mean.

But if they killed his parents, why did he side with them then? Gregor thought and shook his head slightly. This was not a memory to share.

An image flashed in his head, Henry with a torch on his head, imitating the helmet Gregor had worn on that trip, and Luxa pranking him his hair was on fire. The memory made him smile, and suddenly he understood what Luxa had meant – Gregor realized he had never given much thought to how close they must have been at some point.

Then, his mind reeled further back. The High Hall, his first dinner – his first encounter with Henry. _Beware the fish, for Luxa plans to poison you directly!_ He remembered the friendly look he had shot him, how he’d grabbed his arm, his dramatically hushed voice, and the joke – it had been Henry, out of all people, who had actually taught him Underlanders had a sense of humor.

When Gregor told Luxa about that incident, she laughed. “I remember all too well, if I would have had the means, I would have actually poisoned you, you know?”

They exchanged smiles, and after a short while, she averted her gaze. “Thank you. For... for not judging me when I say I want to remember the good things, and even trying to remember them with me.”

Gregor smiled back. Maybe Luxa was right, and things weren’t as black and white as he had always thought. He opened his mouth to respond when a voice suddenly interrupted them from behind. “I am very tempted to quote Hamnet’s “telling old tales out of school”, right now, you two...”

Gregor and Luxa both spun around, only to see the Death Rider waiting behind them, hands on his hips. At first glance, he looked casual and confident as ever, but then Gregor saw he was biting his lip and his smile looked almost... forced. How much exactly had he heard? And why... did an old story about Henry even phase him? Had they... known each other, perhaps?

He glanced at the Death Rider once and realized they must have been around the same age. And he could also see them getting along, both had had that same cocky attitude, and both sure liked to show off.

“We... we were about to go to sleep, really”, Luxa tried to argue, and all he did was raise an eyebrow – “Then do that. Good night, you two. And, you know, actually LISTEN to me this time, you know you owe me, Gregor!”

Gregor’s face flushed a little when he realized the outcast had a point. “Let’s go to sleep...”, he mumbled, trying not to look at Luxa’s confused face. When had the Death Rider even gotten up? Gregor thought he had seen him already having lied down.

“Good night, Gregor”, Luxa whispered, one last time, and he replied “You too”, in the dim light from the lake he could just about make out she was smiling.

The next morning it was Howard, who shook him awake. “Breakfast is almost ready, then we leave.” He shot him and Luxa a last, highly disapproving, glance, concerning how close to each other they had lied out their blankets, and then left to help Dalia and the Death Rider.

Everyone ended up looking at the outcast during breakfast, expecting him to fire up some sort of plan, but he barely seemed to notice. This time, Gregor saw that Dalia and Howard had done most of the cooking, all the outcast did was sit on the side, poking at his fish, like he was deep in thought. Thanatos was always close by, he was pressing his head into his side, like in an attempt to comfort him – for whatever reason.

Gregor pondered what could possibly be wrong – did he know something they didn’t? And if, why was he keeping it from them?

Eventually, Luxa was the one who broke the almost awkward silence – “Do we have some sort of plan, or are we just going to improvise?”

His head jerked up and for a second, Gregor thought he spotted a purple circle under his eye, but he wore a hood now and his face was barely visible in the shade it threw, so he wasn’t sure.

“Eh, Thanatos and I gave it some thought yesterday”, he started and fetched a notebook, where he had sketched the layout of the arena.

“As we have no idea where Longclaw will be, we will have to improvise for the most part. The only thing I do know is where they hold the prisoners”, he pointed at an “x” on his drawing, a little south of the arena. “They will most likely be holding Stellovet there. I suggest we prioritize saving her and then go after Longclaw.”

“So we take a detour to the prison first?”, Luxa asked, and he nodded. “With some luck, they won’t even notice us.”

After they had finished their meal, everyone quickly packed their things and prepared to leave. Gregor didn’t dare ask Howard if he could fly with Luxa again, after he had already seen them sleeping so close together, and thought Dalia was good company as well.

They mounted up on Ares together and Gregor’s bond lifted off directly behind Thanatos this time, Aurora followed close by, with Howard and Luxa.

Thinking it might be rude to stay silent, he asked Dalia for her family and her life at the Fount. She seemed not in the mood for stories, like something was bothering her, though. Almost like the Death Rider, he thought.

All she said was, that her parents were dead and her little brother lived in Regalia, with other relatives. At the question about her own life she just shrugged and said it was alright.

Gregor had a feeling she wanted to be left alone, so he let her. She sat behind him and yet he still envisioned her clearly, her frail build, her intricately braided hair, and her big, deep, almost blueish-purple eyes. Was she looking forward to seeing Stellovet again? If so, she didn’t let it show at all. Gregor knew that he himself wasn’t necessarily, at least if she would behave the same way she had last time.

Then again, hadn’t he told himself to try and stop seeing the world in black and white, yesterday, during the conversation with Luxa? What did he know of Stellovet even? He knew her even less than Henry, and yet he had already written her off as bad. Maybe, Gregor thought to himself, maybe she had a reason too.

The Death Rider lead them through a series of tunnels around the cave with the arena, and when they finally flew out into open space, he signaled them to land immediately. All three bats landed close to the wall and Gregor wanted to switch on his flashlight, but when he tried to pull it out, he remembered he had given it to Dalia earlier. She had wanted to take a look at it, and not given it back yet.

When he took the small one from Mrs. Cormaci instead, the Death Rider prevented him from turning it on. “They will spot us if we make light. Trust me, the prisoners are here. Remain in place and make no sound.”

Gregor nodded, in the same breath he asked himself how they were supposed to free Stellovet in complete darkness.

A few moments passed and Gregor’s eyes got used to the dark to the extent where he could make out shapes. The outcast signaled them to follow him and pointed to the left, where the shape of a tunnel entrance was located.

The group pressed on, Gregor saw Luxa had her hand on her sword, and he eyed the handle of his own, he might need it soon, if they got spotted.

Then, Gregor noticed Howard had taken the lead as the Death Rider had fallen behind a little. He focused his eyes and realized, the outcast was glancing backward.

Gregor had been walking directly behind Howard but now he looked back as well. He could just about see Luxa next to him, and there were the bats, circling above their heads.

It wasn’t them, who the Death Rider was looking at though – it was Dalia. She had remained behind, Gregor noticed, she hadn’t even taken a single step with them.

The outcast was so close to him now that Gregor could partially make out his expression, and what he saw scared him. It was with a mix of shock, anger and... something else, something Gregor couldn’t read, that he stared at Dalia now. Gregor saw she was gripping something elongated firmly.

“Don’t”, he heard the outcast whisper, it was barely audible, but in the dark, quiet cave, his voice sounded loud and clear in Gregor’s ears. “You don’t –”

He never ended up finishing his sentence, when Dalia raised the elongated item, that turned out to be the flashlight she had taken from Gregor, pointed it upward – and switched it on.

No – Gregor wanted to scream, the Death Rider specifically told us not to switch on the... Then it clicked.

Rats were now streaming into the cave from all entrances, apparently, the light had been a signal. The rest of the party froze in their tracks, most looked confused, not the outcast though. His expression told, he knew exactly what had just happened – what Dalia had done.

A huge rat now stepped closer from behind Dalia, he was most likely around seven feet tall, had thick, brown fur and a huge scar across his chest. He placed a paw on Dalia’s shoulder who averted her eyes and looked to the floor. “Bravo, well done – they are all here, the queen, the warrior – and my good friend the Death Rider too! Isn’t it good to see you again”, he showed a toothy, mocking grin.

The bats had realized what was going on as well, they had attempted to attack from above but were quickly restrained by some of the rats, and shackled. Thanatos threw the brown rat a death glare, and Gregor wondered if that was Longclaw.

The Death Rider had not moved yet. All he did was stare at Dalia, with that very same expression. When two rats grabbed his arms to secure him, he did not even protest.

Gregor saw they had gotten all party members now, he himself was lifted off the floor by a big grey rat too, before he could even think about grabbing his sword. He still tried to twist his head in Dalia’s direction, she had given the signal to the rats, and they had not restrained her. She had... given them away on purpose.

A wave of despair and panic overwhelmed Gregor – this was impossible. The gentle, frail Dalia, who had always been so understanding, so caring, so modest – she was supposed to be... a traitor...?

He caught a last glimpse at her face, she was so pale her skin looked almost translucent. Next to the huge brown rat, who Gregor assumed was Longclaw, she looked even more delicate and small than ever, hands firmly gripping the handle of the flashlight, almost like it was a lifeline.

The last thing he heard, before being carried off by the grey rat, was the Death Rider’s voice, he yelled – “This is not going to go the way you think, you know?”, and Gregor asked himself if he was talking to Longclaw – or to Dalia.


	23. Trapped

Henry had immediately noticed there was one set of footsteps less than there should be when he had given the signal to move. He turned around, at first to check if something was wrong... but then he saw Dalia standing there, not having moved a muscle... and was suddenly engulfed in a wave of panic when he realized he recognized the situation.

Images flashed in his mind, how tense she had seemed all day, her lack of appetite, her serious, almost pained, expression – that’s when he realized he knew it all.

He saw her standing at the back, with the lightstick, and immediately guessed her plan. He saw her, he knew what she was about to do, and everything in him screamed he had to prevent it. Do everything he could to save her from... making the same mistake he had. The one mistake he would have given everything he had to erase from history.

“Don’t”, he whispered, staring at her, trying to convey his message through his look. She glanced at him for a moment, but he saw in her eyes that her mind was made up. “You don’t –”

Henry didn’t even know exactly what he had wanted to say. “You don’t have to do this”, “you don’t know what you’re doing”, “you don’t realize what you are getting yourself into”. All of them at once, maybe, and yet he did not have the time to finish a single of them.

She turned on the light – as she had planned. The rats streamed in, Longclaw was among them, but Henry did not even listen to what he was saying. He kept staring at Dalia, unable to comprehend she had just... done this.

Two rats grabbed him at last, he did not have the strength to fight back. At this very moment, Henry felt more helpless than he had in a long time. A hundred questions were reeling in his mind – most prominently there was the big “why”. Everyone had a “why”, he had had one himself. He wanted to know Dalia’s. He wanted to... understand... but he couldn’t.

He felt he was being carried away now, together with the others... this was his last chance to say something, to express all those screaming thoughts in his head.

“This is not going to go the way you think, you know?”, he was staring at Dalia, then his eyes darted over to Longclaw. He wouldn’t have been able to tell at which one of the two the words had been directed.

They disappeared out of sight soon, and dazed as he was, he realized he was dragged through the exact tunnel that led to the prisons, that he had wanted to lead the party into. He was not alone either, they were all there – Luxa, Gregor, Howard and the bats. Dalia had remained, of course.

_ Go, go, go, go. Stand with your friends –  _ Ripred’s voice rang in Henry’s ears, as loud and clear as if he was speaking at this very moment. _Stand with your friends._ They hadn’t been his friends. Never. And he knew they weren’t Dalia’s either. If only she knew... if only... she knew... what he knew... If only...

Henry’s thoughts were interrupted by the rats that were carrying him, they had put him back on his own feet and Henry realized he could see normally. A single fuel bowl stood in the corner of the prison and illuminated the room fairly well.

“In you go”, one of the rats snarled and pushed him into the pit in the middle of the room. The rest of his party members followed, and Henry let out a pained cry when he landed harshly on his shoulder.

Back when he had rescued the crawlers from here, he had used a rope, but now, he had fallen the approximately eight or nine feet, and it had not been pleasant. Now he could make out screams and groans from the others too, his mind wandered to Thanatos and his eyes started scanning the bottom of the pit for him, as he slowly rose to his feet... instead, they found someone else.

Her dress was torn, her hair unwashed and disheveled, and her face and hands, as well as her naked feet, smeared in dirt – but she was alive and well, staring at them all in disbelief – “It is you!”, Stellovet’s voice was overflowing with joy. She sprinted directly at them. Henry saw her leaping at him first, then she presumably remembered it would look weird if she greeted the outcast before her own brother, so she extended a hand to help Howard up.

He instantly locked her in a tight embrace, as soon as he let go, she approached Henry, awkwardly trying to straighten out her hair and scratch off some of the dirt on her hands and face. “You... came for me!”

He threw her a smile. “Kinda had to. The guy who kidnapped you was... an old friend.”

“You fwiends?” The entire party shrieked when they suddenly heard a tiny voice from a corner of the pit. Only Stellovet turned away from Henry and towards the corner. “They are, you can come out!”

“What is –”, Howard started, but froze when suddenly something moved in the corner. Stellovet ran back there and apparently supported whoever it was. When she emerged in the light again, leaning on her shoulder was the crème-colored figure of a bat. She had white stripes, that were almost invisible against her light fur, expressive, green eyes – and around her left foot was an iron shackle, tying her down to the floor.

“Who is –” Luxa took a step forward, examining the strange flier. Henry saw now that her lower body was torn by a gash and she bled quite heavily.

“May I introduce”, Stellovet smiled, “this is Hera. She is a prisoner like we are. We kept each other company, over the last days.” She paused for a second, looking back – “Come out, you three, they don’t bite – well, most of them...”, she giggled, “and these are...”, from behind Hera suddenly emerged a tiny white head, from under her belly came another, light-brown one, and from in between Stellovet’s legs emerged a third, dark-brown head.

“They fwiends?”, the tiny white bat that sat on, who Henry assumed was her mother, asked again, and Stellovet giggled. “These are Leda”, she pointed at the white pup, “Danae”, the light-brown one, “and this right here is Io”, she picked up the dark-brown one and caressed her head lightly. “They are Hera’s pups, and they were captured with her.”

Henry shot a look at Stellovet, the way she stood there, among the family of bats. The babies now clustered around her, while the mother lied at her feet, clearly exhausted. Her torn dress, the dirt on her face, and the disheveled hair – he would have almost not recognized her.

The group soon assembled around the flier family and Hera told them she had been on her way from the flier’s land to the Fount, together with her partner and her newborn pups.

They had had official permission to stay, as her partner Chronos had been supposed to start working there as a courier. But on their way, they had encountered a storm over the waterway, that had driven them off-course, and she had been separated from Chronos. She had barely been able to save herself and her pups into a tunnel, but halfway through that tunnel, they had encountered rats, who had brought them here, only a day before Stellovet had arrived.

“As I am sure my sister has told you”, Howard addressed them, after she had finished her story, “we are the children of the family that administrates the Fount. And should we manage to escape from here, you four are very welcome to come with us and live there – even if your partner should be lost.”

Hera nodded at him gratefully. “Your offer is very kind. We will gladly accept.” Her eyes were heavy with sorrow from the memory of her partner, who Henry assumed was dead – if not a miracle had happened.

Maybe ten minutes later they had all introduced themselves, and it had fallen to Howard to tell Hera and Stellovet their own story. Gregor and Luxa had looked after their own bats, whom the rats had tied up with heavy chains to prevent them from flying away, and Henry had checked for Thanatos.

“I... am okay, I swear”, his bond had assured him while gritting his teeth in pain. The chains were so tight they were almost cutting into his skin and forcing his wings into a very uncomfortable position. As much as Henry had tried, together with the others, to loosen the shackles, they had been unsuccessful.

All three of them were occupied with trying to support their bonds as well as they could. Luxa had her arms wrapped around Aurora, stroking her fur soothingly, Gregor was sitting side by side with Ares, gripping his claw firmly, and Henry was lying, face pressed into Thanatos’ fur, with an arm around his neck.

Howard was sitting with Stellovet, an arm around her shoulders, quietly talking to her. Hera and her pups were lying close by as well.

Now that all stories had been exchanged and silence had returned to the prison, Henry felt the lump return to his throat, he saw the look on Dalia’s face again and his own inability to prevent it all.

It all made sense now, they had realized. How the rats had known where Stellovet would be... how they had found out about Luxa staying at the Fount... It all made sense... such terrible sense now. The only thing that was still unanswered was the big “why”.

Henry felt tears rise in his eye, he pressed his face firmly into Thanatos’ fur, to make sure nobody saw him cry. How would he explain the tears to them, after all?

Thanatos asked what was wrong, after a while, and Henry told him, as quietly as he could. “I couldn’t do anything, you know?”, he tried not to sob, “I could only stand there and watch her do the same thing I had done. I... I could not do anything...!”

The tears eventually started falling and Thanatos couldn’t do much, except for staying close and letting him cry into his fur, but it was okay. Henry was immensely glad everyone was so occupied with each other they did not notice. He had no desire to try and come up with an explanation for why he was crying, like when he had listened to that conversation between Luxa and Gregor yesterday.

It was like his enhanced hearing was a blessing and a curse at the same time – he was incredibly grateful for the possibilities of perception it provided, but then again, it had also enabled him to hear the two kids talking last night when he had already been lying down, trying to sleep.

_ It is hard for me as well, remembering him for more than what he... did, in the end, but then again, there are so many good things to remember as well.  _ Henry still heard Luxa’s voice, loud and clear, almost trembling with uncertainty and pain.

_ I try, you know? To remember the good things. Because who else will, beside me... and maybe Vikus?  _ Nobody, Henry thought, and the thought burned like a seal of hot iron someone was pressing into his heart – traitor.

He had spent hours quietly talking to Thanatos, after listening to that conversation, and yet he had still cried himself to sleep that night. Everything they had said had been so painfully bittersweet it had been almost unbearable.

That was why he had attempted to forbid himself any thought about his past, why he had assumed – almost wanted – to never go on a quest again, with these people. Because as much as he thought they accepted him – they only really accepted the Death Rider. Not Henry.

And Henry – they would never accept again.

Nearly two hours passed before everyone had collected themselves enough so that they could hold a small crisis meeting in the middle of the pit, to discuss their possibilities.

Henry had his hood pulled over his head to cover as much of his face as he could, but the rest of the questers didn’t look any better themselves. Everyone was still dazed and in denial about what had happened.

Stellovet sat next to her brother, knees pulled to her chest, her expression grave, Henry assumed from the revelation her own governess had turned out a traitor.

When the exiled prince realized they were all looking at him for options, he sighed. “I... I don’t know, really. This is not a situation I was prepared for, as bad as that sounds. I...”

Howard interrupted him. “I don’t think anyone was prepared for that, honestly.” He was clearly referring to Dalia’s betrayal, and the silence, that followed his words, undermined their truth.

“But we have to do something!”, Luxa exclaimed, “We can’t just sit here and twiddle our thumbs!”

“I’m afraid that’s exactly what we’ll have to do. Until... something happens.” Henry sighed, “Maybe they will fetch some of us to fight in the arena. In that case, we should be prepared to attempt a breakout. But right now? What do you want to do? FLY up there?”

Everyone was silent for they all knew he was right. It didn’t make it any better though.

It took an entire day for the rats to fetch them out of the prison pit. They came while the group had just agreed to go to sleep for the second time, all exhausted and weakened from the imprisonment. They had had enough food and water left to last them another day maybe, but after that things were looking dire.

When the rats finally came, they only fetched the humans, including Stellovet. The bats they left as they were, Luxa’s face was pure hatred for letting them suffer from the chains this whole time, Gregor was almost crying and Henry wore a stone-cold face, like a mask.

They were lifted from the pit and the exiled prince exchanged glances with Luxa, Howard, and then Stellovet and Gregor. He hoped they remembered the plan they had made for this scenario. Luxa nodded at him, so did Gregor and Stellovet. Howard hesitated, but then did the same thing.

Henry assumed they would be taken to the arena, and as soon as he had gotten his hands on a weapon, he thought he would be able to take out the guards. He needed to get to Longclaw, who he assumed would be there to watch, and maybe with a sword to the throat of their leader, the rats would finally let their fliers go.

As Henry anticipated, they were taken straight to the arena. He counted seven rats in close proximity, the humans were five – it should be enough, even if none of them except Henry had fought a rat on foot before.

The only fault in his plan, Henry realized when a different, light-brown, rat approached, informing them they would all fight for their entertainment soon, was that Longclaw was nowhere to be seen. The brown rat whose name was Hardskull, soon revealed where they had hidden their weapons – presumably to show off and express the rats’ confidence in their grasp on the prisoners –which had been his mistake.

So suddenly, that not the rats, not his fellow questers, saw it coming, Henry, not restrained by anyone anymore, leaped in the air and onto the back of one of the rats. That was a trick he had learned from Kismet, it usually did a fine job at disorienting the rat in question, and it worked this time as well.

The one he had caught, a dark-grey rat with a torn ear, screeched and tried to shake him, but Henry didn’t let her. He grabbed hold of her ears and dragged her head into the direction of their weapons. Blindly, she stumbled in that direction, and Henry grabbed hold of his sword. The next moment, her throat was slit, and she fell.

The exiled prince jumped away from her, positioning himself with his back against the wall and checking on his fellow questers. They had all started dodging the attacks of the rats, that had fallen into a small panic, not knowing how this could be happening. Henry now grabbed random swords from the stash and tossed them in their direction.

Somehow, everyone held a sword when the pile was empty, and Henry took up Charos for himself. He used the rock, their weapons had been lying on, to propel himself up, and did the “land on the back”-trick a couple more times, killing two more rats that way, before he reached the others.

They formed a circle, defending themselves from all sides. Henry realized that their plan had worked, thanks to them having the moment of surprise on their side, the rats were disorganized and unprepared.

Henry slew one after the other, Charos whizzed through the air, slitting throat after throat. He was entirely immersed in the battle, like back in the arena, but not so much that he didn’t keep an eye out for Longclaw. He must come soon, Henry thought, with this commotion and all.

When he finally thought he saw the brown fur of the rat that had started it all, he raised Charos above his head and charged at the silhouette, every inch in his body out to kill.

Then, his ears suddenly rang with the sound of metal against metal. Henry was so surprised he slipped out of focus for a second – that wasn’t a sound he had expected to hear here. Like in a trance, he realized the rat wasn’t Longclaw. The brown fur was merely a decoy, and when she had turned around, she had blocked his attack – with a dagger.

She held it still raised now and the blade shimmered golden in the light of the fuel bowls, the rats used to light the arena.

It was like someone had dunked his head into cold water. Henry stood still, frozen in place, staring at the dagger... and the rat, that lost the brown coat now, stepping into the light.

Her fur shimmered silvern against the gold of the blade and her eyes... Henry stared at her in disbelief. This was impossible... utterly impossible. Only once he had seen those eyes before, and he had assumed – hoped – he would have to never see them again, after...

“Well, well... look who we have here”, her voice was soothing and calm, and her face was relaxed. She lowered the blade.

It was like hearing her voice had flipped a switch within Henry. He instantly raised Charos again, ready to pierce her lying throat for good, when –

“Oh, I wouldn’t do that if I were you”, a different familiar voice sounded from behind her, and Henry saw brown fur – and black.

“Any of you!” Longclaw shouted, in his grasp the twisting figure of Thanatos, Ares and Aurora were held by two of his guards – claws at their throats. Hera was nowhere to be seen. “The next one who raises a blade – loses a bat. Got it?”

Henry wanted nothing more than to wipe that toothy grin from his face, but one look at Thanatos’ face was enough and Charos slipped from his grasp at last. From his perception of the room, he noticed everyone else had dropped their weapons as well now.

But his gaze wasn’t fixated on Longclaw – no, the other rat held his attention. The one with the golden dagger. Henry knew it. There was only one dagger that had a blade of this color.

“That is mine”, he stepped forward, where he had gotten the strength, he didn’t know. His voice was so quiet nobody heard him – except for her.

She smiled. “Oh, yes, it is... that is why I demanded on keeping it, after all, when Longclaw brought it back from his trip to the resting place of our dear late king Gorger. It reminded me of...”

She took a step forward, eyeing him thoroughly for the first time. Her eyes – those big, expressive, blue eyes – stared at him like he was still the naive, sixteen-year-old child he had been when they had first met.

“My, my... you... hadn’t I smelled it was you, I wouldn’t have even recognized you... Silverchild”, she chuckled, “how much a year and a half can change someone, aren’t I right?”

Henry gritted his teeth. “Don’t call me that. You just said it yourself... I have changed.”

She chuckled. “That may be true – I am deeply sorry for that eye, by the way, it looks like that was rather painful – but you are still you. Or are you not?”

Henry scoffed. “I will not listen to your lies for a second longer, you hear? Wouldn’t you hold my flier, you would be as dead as the king you have so easily abandoned for...”, he threw a dismissive glance at Longclaw, “what, your next plaything? Because let’s be real, that’s what they all are to you, aren’t they?”

Longclaw tightened his grip on Thanatos. “What is he talking about – and how do you even know him, Tonguetwist?”

She giggled and shrugged. “Oh, that is a long story. Silverchild and I are old friends. Very... old friends.”

Never before in his life had Henry wished for the power to kill through looks more than now. His gaze burned holes through the sleek silver fur of the rat that had ruined his life but he could not risk Thanatos by attacking her. He noticed he was clenching his fist so hard his nails were digging into his skin to the point where it would start bleeding soon.

Tonguetwist did not care. She minced around him and his party members, standing, mouth agape, not daring to move, and mustered them. “I must say, Silverchild, you have improved your abilities from when we last met. That’s why I can not risk you performing another stunt like this again, I hope you understand.”

She gazed at Longclaw, twirling Henry’s former dagger, the exact dagger he had lost during his fall from the cliff, that he and Thanatos had searched for almost twenty minutes – how Longclaw had found it, Henry didn’t know, all he knew was that he wanted her dirty paws off Hamnet’s gift.

“We will keep your fliers with us from now on”, Longclaw grinned. “And should you try to escape again – well... I am sure you can imagine what will happen in that case.” He dragged a claw across his throat and chuckled.

None of them resisted as the rats dragged them back to the pit. All Henry could do was throw Thanatos a last, desperate glance, before he disappeared out of sight together with Longclaw and... Tonguetwist.

“I am curious to see how you will attempt to get yourself out of this one, Silverchild!”, she called after him and he heard her laugh.

_ Silverchild _ , the name rang in his ears, _Silverchild_ – Henry shook his head. This was not the time for –

He was shoved back into the pit before he could finish the thought. He cried in pain when he landed hard on his left side, and only registered the others, who followed him, vaguely.

_ Silver... child. _ Henry gritted his teeth, trying to suppress the tears. He couldn’t break down now, the others... they needed him, they...

The look in Tonguetwist’s blue eyes, condescending yet compassionate, calculating yet sympathetic. She... she had always been so full of contradictions... always...

Gregor felt a great numbness take him over. His eyes instinctively searched for Ares... his hand for his claw, but he wasn’t there. He still saw the cold eyes of the rat that had held him and had to suppress tears.

He glanced around the cave, everyone was visibly dazed from what had happened. Luxa was lying on the floor, exactly where she had landed, curled up in a ball. Howard and Stellovet were huddled together, Luxa’s cousin had somehow mustered up the strength to tell Hera what had happened. And the Death Rider... Gregor could almost not see him, where he sat in the darkness of a corner, curled into a ball, not looking at any of them.

What had the rat with the silver fur called him... Gregor pondered – Silverchild. He had never heard the name before, yet they obviously knew each other. Gregor wanted to ask how, but he lacked the strength.

He suddenly saw him fighting, back in the arena. Gregor thought he had never seen any human fight like that, it had almost seemed like he had been able to... predict his opponents’ next moves. Questions as to how he had done that burned on his mind, but he dared not approach him. The outcast had, throughout Gregor’s entire time knowing him, always remained someone he had had a lot of respect for. The kind of respect that makes you not want to mess with someone... ever.

Several hours passed before any of them moved. It was Howard, at last, who called them all to the middle of the pit again. Luxa and Gregor managed to get up and Howard supported Stellovet. She... she looked so different from how she had when Gregor had last seen her. Her hair was disheveled and her dress torn and dirty. She almost looked like a completely different person from the one Gregor remembered, with the intricate hairstyle and beautifully ornated dress, who had dropped the nasty comment about Henry to Luxa.

Maybe, he thought, maybe she was not so bad after all. Maybe, she was just a child, dragged into this mess against her will like... we all.

They were all eventually sitting in the middle, all except the Death Rider. He had not moved a muscle since they had been brought back here, even when Howard called out to him again.

No reaction.

Gregor nervously shifted, Luxa and he exchanged glances. What was the matter with him? Did it have anything to do with what that silver rat had said?

Finally, it was Luxa, who stood up. She carefully took a few steps towards him, unsure of how to begin a conversation. “Who was she?”, she finally asked, standing directly before the outcast.

He didn’t move at first, and Luxa had already opened her mouth to say something else when he finally looked up. Gregor had never seen an expression like the one in his eye before – the only word he had to describe it was... broken.

“She... she was the reason I became an outcast.”

The shocked silence, that followed his words, seemed to last forever. Gregor’s head was reeling.

“You... she was... what?” Luxa was stammering now, expressing their combined confusion in words.

Everyone soon clustered around the outcast, instead of assembling in the middle of the room. He sighed, seemingly pulling his arms tighter around himself. “There was... I made a mistake. And she was the one who dragged me into it. In the end, I had no choice but to... stay away. Stay in the Dead Land.”

It was not much information, no details or concrete events, but Gregor felt like he was telling them more than he was comfortable with anyway. The rest of them didn’t ask further either, even though he saw the curiosity in all their eyes.

“She is as dangerous as Longclaw, if not worse”, the outcast finally spoke up again, his eye now shone with fierce determination. “She is cunning and manipulative and she must never be trusted, you hear?”

Quieter, he added – “I am almost certain it was her who turned Dalia against us. It is in her nature.”

Luxa, Howard, and Stellovet exchanged glances. Howard’s sister suddenly averted her eyes. “How do you know that?”, she asked, not looking at any of them, “How do you know it was this rat... and not us... me... who drover her to turn against us?”

Everyone stared at Stellovet in shock and Gregor saw tears glistening in her eyes. “You told me, Howard... you told me to be kinder, to show respect, yet I did nothing but mistreat her, purposely even. It was fun... I thought it was fun. But what if... what if this... this is all my fault?”

She finally broke down crying, wrapping her own arms around herself. Howard scooted over to her, embracing her tightly. “You could have not foreseen this, Stello, I...”

Then, suddenly, Luxa turned around to her. “Blaming yourself will not help us now. It does not matter who is to blame. All that matters is, that we are all here now... in this hole... together. That Longclaw has our fliers, and that we will not leave you behind, should rescue come.”

Stellovet looked up at her, eyes red from crying. “You... why are you saying that? You... you hate me, do you not?”

Luxa hesitated for a moment. “I do not... hate you. In fact, I always thought you hated me. I am here now, am I not? Here, on this quest... to... to save you.” Her eyes were a little darker than usual, she looked like she was desperately trying to not think about whatever Stellovet had done to her in the past.

The two girls sat across each other, visibly exhausted, tormented and played for fools by life, but they were... talking. Like normal humans.

Gregor looked around and saw the surprise in Howard’s eyes... curiously enough even the Death Rider had widened his eye in disbelief.

“I... I do not... hate you”, Stellovet mumbled, avoiding Luxa’s gaze, “I simply...”

Suddenly, the outcast’s head jolted up. It reminded Gregor a little of what the bats did when rats were close by. But he looked not angry or aggressive... instead, he grinned widely.

Swoosh – something swiped down all of a sudden and the party jolted around. Before them landed at first one, and soon a second and a third... bat. Gregor stared at them in disbelief when Luxa darted past him, crying out in joy. He saw her wrap her arms around the neck of... Aurora.

“Death?!” The outcast’s voice was clouded in pain, but he too managed to get to his feet and stagger towards Thanatos.

Ares already pressed his nose into Gregor’s side when it finally clicked... their bats were back. He wrapped his arms around Ares’ neck, hiding his face in his fur. “H... how...?” Gregor felt tears rise in his eyes. They had been with the rats... with Longclaw. Gregor felt Ares’ fur tickle his face... he was here. But... how was that possible?

“It is quite simple, how, believe it or not”, Thanatos’ voice sounded suddenly, and everyone turned his way. “It was Dalia.”

The story, Thanatos told, was received in grave silence. The Death Rider had had his arms wrapped around his bat at all times, Aurora had Luxa cradled up between her wings as well. Ares’ head was lying in Gregor’s lap. All of them were happy the bats were back but...

“It has to be a trap”, Luxa raised her voice first. “It must be that rat, Tonguetwist, she is cunning, you said?”, she eyed the Death Rider. “It must be her plan to lure us into a trap.”

“By freeing our only means to get out of here?”, surprisingly enough it was the outcast who answered, stroking Thanatos’ fur. “Even if it is a trap, I can not see how it would not work out in our favor. Death, you said she killed the guards?”

“One guard”, the black bat with the white face said, “It was one, and he was really drunk. She slit his throat and told us to fly.”

Everyone remained silent. “But why would she...”, Howard spoke, but his sister interrupted him. Maybe Dalia’s betrayal hadn’t settled in with her entirely yet, as she hadn’t been there. “She could also have had second thoughts.”

Luxa averted her eyes. “Traitors are traitors”, she mumbled, and Gregor noticed the Death Rider clench his jaw. “It doesn’t matter”, he spoke, his voice determined. “We have our fliers back – we need to get out of here.” He paused for a second. “That is... you all need to get out of here.”

He exchanged a glance with Thanatos. “Take Stellovet, Hera and her pups back to the Fount. Death and I... we deal with Longclaw... and Tonguetwist.”


	24. Retribution

“That is unacceptable!”, Gregor watched Luxa standing before the Death Rider, hands to her hips. “I am not LEAVING now! Not before –”

Surprisingly enough, Aurora approached her from behind. “This mission was to save Stellovet, was it not?”

Luxa turned to her bond, mouth agape in protest, but the outcast raised his voice now. “Yes. Luxa, you were complaining earlier about how I dragged you and your family into my feud. Well, now, you have to take your family – and Hera with her pups – home. You have to fly with them and protect them. You have what you came for”, he glanced at Stellovet who stood beside her brother, “let me and Death finish our own objective.”

Luxa wanted to protest, her whole posture was defensive and determined, but she had run out of arguments.

“You need to go... now, before they notice the fliers are gone and send reinforcements”, the outcast urged, putting a hand on her shoulder and pushing her towards Aurora.

Luxa unwillingly approached her bat but glanced back. “You want to take them all on your own?”, she asked hesitantly, and Gregor suddenly realized that it wasn’t just pride and stubbornness, that made her want to stay – she was worried about the Death Rider.

But he simply grinned. “Death and I are more than able to take down a few rats, you don’t have to worry about us.”

“Last time we saw you, I heard you complain how you weren’t able to fight anymore after you had lost your eye”, she mumbled and Gregor listened up. She had a point.

But the outcast simply chuckled. “I did. But...”, he exchanged knowing glances with Thanatos, “I solved that problem. For good.”

Howard now frowned. “How do you... SOLVE something like that?”

The Death Rider grinned. “You know what?”, he chuckled at Luxa, “I’ll tell you the next time we meet. Kay?”

Luxa bit her lip and looked away. “If... you are indeed as strong as you say. If... there WILL be a next time...”

He smiled again, this time his expression was mischievous, yet a little solemn. “Oh, you aren’t getting rid of me that easily. I have no plans to die... anytime soon.” He turned away from them and fastened one of the pockets around Thanatos’ lower body.

Gregor suddenly listened up. _I have no plans to die_... he had the weird feeling he had heard that phrase before... somewhere. But he couldn’t begin to remember where.

“Alright... then”, Luxa sighed and clenched her fist. “Your battle is yours. If Tonguetwist is indeed the reason... why you became an outcast, I can hardly deny you the right to kill her.”

She climbed onto Aurora’s back. When Howard wanted to mount up behind her, Ares asked if he wouldn’t want to ride with Stellovet on his back, because he assumed he wanted to stay close to his sister and Hera had her own pups to carry. It had taken the outcast a couple hits with his black blade, Gregor could never remember its name, something with Char-, that Thanatos had brought with him, to destroy the shackle around Hera’s foot, and she claimed she was fit to fly.

Howard hesitated, but then took Stellovet to ride with him on Ares, dismissively eyeing how Gregor mounted up behind Luxa on Aurora. Thanatos exchanged a few words with the bats in their tongue to make sure they knew the way, and then the three lifted off.

“Fly you high!”, the Death Rider called and raised the black sword in the air to salute them.

“Fly you high, Death Rider!”, Luxa called, “Fly you high!”, Gregor shouted as well, Stellovet followed. Howard remained silent at first, but apparently, his sister had elbowed him, causing him to add his own, little enthusiastic “Fly you high.”

Aurora, who had lifted off behind Hera and Ares, had just exited the tunnel that led to the prison cave when Gregor heard the first angry screams. The claw of a leaping rat missed Aurora only by inches before she gained altitude and left them behind, hissing and screaming of anger and frustration.

When they, at last, exited the area around the arena, leaving the echoing calls of the rats behind finally, Gregor allowed himself to relax for the first time. Ares led the way through a few tunnels, Gregor had no idea where they were going, but he had learned to trust the instincts and sense of orientation of the bats, over the course of his last few quests.

They flew for maybe half an hour, and throughout the entire time, he remained silent. There were a hundred things he would have wanted to talk about to Luxa, but he had no idea how to start a conversation, after what they had just gone through. Gregor almost felt like he was wasting an opportunity to talk to her, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak up.

When the bats flew out of the opening of a tunnel into the cave with the familiar lake, Howard called for a break. Hera wasn’t strong enough to fly for a long period of time, and Ares and Aurora weren’t at their full strength either, after days in chains.

The bats fished and Howard lit a fire to grill the food. Gregor was halfway through his first fish when he suddenly realized something – “It was not a trap”, he concluded, “Dalia did not free the bats to lure us into a trap. You were wrong!”

Something within Gregor was happy. He still saw the frail, gentle face of the young woman before him, and even though he had witnessed her betrayal himself, he found it hard to believe she was entirely evil. She must have had a reason, he thought.

Howard shrugged. “Even if so... she is a traitor, is she not?”

Ares and Aurora exchanged glances but didn’t say anything, Hera was occupied talking to Stellovet, who sat next to her, feeding the babies pieces of fish. Gregor realized they must have had the opportunity to grow close before the rescue party had arrived.

Luxa remained silent as well and avoided his gaze. Gregor decided not to press for an answer, he knew the whole topic of betrayal was sensitive for her, ever since the incident with Henry, and he didn’t want to upset her more than necessary.

“Do you think he will be okay?”, she suddenly asked, and Gregor was confused for a moment. His thoughts had circled around Henry and for a second he thought she meant him, which would have been hard to answer since Henry was dead – but then he realized she must have meant the Death Rider.

He thought of the outcast, how he had slain the rats during their breakout attempt – and was suddenly entirely certain he would be fine.

Gregor’s mind took him back to when he had asked Ripred that same question about Hamnet, in the Vineyard of Eyes, and his response – “Don’t worry about him. He can look after himself”, Gregor smiled at her, “he survived probably years out here without any help from the rest of you – us.”

Luxa looked up, Gregor thought she remembered the words. “You are right. Maybe I worry too much.”

“I think the Death Rider is the last person we should have to worry about”, Howard spoke now. “After all”, his voice sounded slightly mocking, “didn’t he himself say he had “no plans to die”?”

Luxa looked down and Gregor suddenly asked himself if the line had sounded as familiar to her as it had to him.

In a quieter moment, when Howard and Stellovet were occupied, he approached her again. “I really don’t think you have to worry about him.”

Luxa nodded. “It’s not like I even have a reason... at all.”

Gregor suddenly recalled their conversation in the jungle, what she had revealed. He hesitated, but then asked – “Does... he still remind you of that dead person, like back in the jungle?”

She started kneading her hands. “He... a little. Though, it’s not like that is of any importance. They just share a few traits, that is all. Though, if this trip has proved anything, then that they were as different as they were similar.”

Gregor looked at her lowered head, the nervously folded hands – and suddenly asked himself if she meant Henry. Hadn’t he himself compared them as well, when the Death Rider had interrupted their conversation about Luxa’s cousin, in this very same cave?

He wanted to ask but hesitated to bring up Henry again. What did it really matter, honestly, if it was him or someone else?

“Well, anyway, we should get going soon. I think Howard is almost done with... whatever it was he was doing”, Gregor glanced in his direction, trying to determine what it was, and saw Howard standing next to Stellovet, helping her place the pups on their mother’s back.

“Maybe she is not so bad”, Gregor suddenly remarked, looking at Stellovet, and to his surprise, Luxa nodded. “I do not know her very well, to be honest”, she looked down at her hands again. “Neither do I really know any of them, except Howard.”

“Well”, Gregor tried giving her an encouraging smile, “maybe you can get to know them soon.”

Luxa looked up at him and returned the smile. “Yes. Maybe.”

Henry focused his senses on making out every detail, down in the arena, maybe a hundred feet below where Thanatos was cowering, in a niche in the wall of the huge cave. There were lit fuel bowls down there, but his echolocation was much more precise than his eyes.

He suddenly saw Luxa’s worried face again, and it stung in his chest, bittersweetly. It was nice having her worry for him, then again – it wasn’t really him who she was worried about.

Angrily, he shook his head. Now was not the time to deal with all of that. He had a mission – and a plan.

“You sure about this?”, Thanatos asked one last time and Henry grinned, watching the rats below conducting a frantic search. Up here, they could not even smell them. “And you aren’t? You know we can defeat him. It’s... us, after all. We are the Death Rider”, Henry confidently claimed.

Thanatos hummed in approval. “You have a point. But what about the rest? Dalia and... Tonguetwist?”

Thanatos had asked about the sliver rat, immediately after the others had left, if she was the same Tonguetwist that had won his trust and enticed him to betray his own people. Henry had simply nodded.

Thanatos’ only reaction had been – “Well, in that case, she is all yours.” Quieter he had added – “Seems like I am not the only one going up against the demons of my past today”, and Henry had given him a crooked smile. “I wish you were.” Thanatos had hit him and the exiled prince had sighed, “Maybe it is for the best if we slay our demons together today. Whatever Tonguetwist even wants with Longclaw... and the other way around. Like, how did those two even find each other?”

Thanatos had simply shrugged, “evil attracts evil, I guess”, was his only theory, and Henry admitted it was not the most important thing in the world to find out, even if he was curious.

He was way more interested in Dalia’s motive, and whether she had had some sort of plan of her own, or if it was a true change of heart. Thanatos had not been able to say, but Henry was sure the flier could see how much the topic genuinely upset his bond, so he had promised to try and find out, once they had dealt with Longclaw.

They would need to find something to do with Dalia anyway, leaving her here was out of the question for Henry. The rats would instantly kill her, he thought, no matter if Longclaw lived or died.

Now he was staring down at the huge brown rat, in the middle of the arena, yelling at his followers for still not having found them. Dalia or Tonguetwist were nowhere to be seen. “Ready?”, he asked Thanatos, and instead of an answer, his bond spread his wings and lifted off.

All rats in the entire arena – Henry estimated it to be maybe a dozen, froze instantly, when the black flier touched down amidst them, seemingly unphased by their number and the fact that they had done nothing except to look for him, ever since he had vanished.

Henry knew he should be scared – any rational person with even the slightest self-preservation instinct would be – but he wasn’t. Not now. All he felt was pure and utter desire to end it – here and now.

Longclaw stared at Henry as he confidently strutted towards him. His followers had long encircled them, so there was no turning back from this, even if the exiled prince would have wanted.

“I hear you were looking for me!”, Henry called, spreading his arms. His two swords were tied to his back now, and Mys was back at his hip. Thanatos and he had stolen them back before they had made their plan, immediately after the group had left.

Longclaw showed a toothy grin. “I was. You know, I almost started to worry you had slipped through my fingers again... but no, that’s not why you are here now, is it?”

Henry grinned back. “I am here...”, he threw a short glance around, “to do exactly what you want me to, actually.”

A confused murmur spread through the crowd of rats around them and Henry’s grin widened. He spread his arms like he was talking to all of them – “You might not like it, but I know what you want! I know you all remember me – you were all there, in the audience, you all cheered for me, did you not?”, he called out to them and more murmur arose. “Those of you who have not seen a single of my fights should raise their hand now!”

A quick glance around showed Henry not one of them had raised their hand. Some were even looking away, like in shame. He grinned widely.

“See? That’s why I know you all really only want one thing from me – you want to see me fight!”

The murmur became excited now, and Longclaw hissed angrily. Turning back to Henry, he looked down at him, condescendingly – “And you... are here, because you wish to fight?”

That was the cue he had been waiting for. Henry stepped forward, tugging at his right glove. “Oh, I will fight. I – we”, he threw Thanatos a short glance, “– will fight, and celebrate the final, fiftieth victory in this damned arena. The one you robbed me off – do you even have ANY idea how much that odd number frustrates me, like, who in the world calls themselves the champion of FORTY-NINE battles? How does that even sound?” Some of the rats giggled, only silenced by Longclaw’s death glare.

Henry took another step forward. “We, the Death Rider, will fight for your entertainment one last time. But we will not just fight anyone”, he continued, stripping off the glove at last. Taking another step closer, Henry raised his glove above his head, for everyone to see.

“Dear audience, today, we – the Death Rider – present to you, a one-of-a-kind special, a spectacle like none of you have ever seen. Witness what will surely be the greatest battle in the history of any establishment of this sort! The greatest champion you have ever had, victor of forty-nine battles, the Wielder of Fire, and the Man Who Fights At The Side Of Death – Yours Truly!”, he took a short bow, “... against the one and only –”

Henry raised his hand with the glove even higher, before theatrically tossing it on the ground, directly before Longclaw’s feet, “... gnawer who thinks he deserves to BE YOUR KING!”

After the gauntlet had landed at Lonclaw’s feet, the room was grave-silent for a moment. Then, deafening cheering sounded, the rats around them were ecstatic. Henry’s little speech had woken their appetite for a good battle, and one thing was for sure – this would be one.

Longclaw himself stared at Henry with narrow eyes for a moment, as if silently acknowledging the masterful strategy behind it. If he challenged him to a fight in the arena, their battle would be guaranteed certain conditions, nobody would dare interrupt and it would be once and for all to the death, it was Henry’s attempt at preventing the gnawer from playing foul.

Slowly he bowed and picked up the gauntlet, grinning cunningly. “Very well... if that is what you want... so be it.” With that, he tore the glove to shreds.

Longclaw attacked immediately and without hesitation. Henry had expected it, still, the rat was so fast he barely made it onto Thanatos’ back. In the blink of an eye, he decided to fight this fight with his normal sword instead of Charos, as the long double-hander was hard to wield from the air.

He broke an ignifer-pellet over it and lit it on fire, while Thanatos was circling above Longclaw’s head. They did not have to talk anymore to be in sync with each other – “Nice speech”, the flier remarked quickly, and Henry just grinned, before he dove down, charging at their opponent.

The rest of the rats had indeed cleared the arena and taken their seats on the bleachers, Henry saw more had come than there had originally been. But had had no time to focus on that now.

Longclaw was fierce and a highly skilled warrior. Henry had to use his sword to deter him from leaping at them more than once, though he was never fast enough to land a hit.

For a while, they circled around him, but it quickly became obvious this was not the correct strategy for this battle. “He is too fast”, Henry gritted his teeth. “Let me down and we’ll attack separately, from both the ground and the air.”

“Are you sure?”, Thanatos sounded worried. Henry parried the next hit from the rat and managed to barely singe his fur with the burning blade.

“We have to put on a good show too, or we’ll lose the audience, and when that happens, they will all start attacking and our plan goes down the drain.”

Thanatos couldn’t really argue with that. When Henry leaped from his back, he jumped straight at their opponent, flaming sword in both hands, shouting his most menacing battle cry.

Longclaw dodged at the very last second, and from then on the battle changed. The prince and the gnawer were circling each other on the bottom while Thanatos attacked over and over from above. It was clear that this was the way to go, as Longclaw had to split his attention between them, which made it harder for him.

Still, he was an incredibly skilled fighter, and both Henry and Thanatos were soon bleeding – the exiled prince from a gash across the side of his stomach, the flier from a wound he had received when the gnawer had dug his claw into his leg.

But likewise, Henry had landed a few hits himself – the gnawer’s right arm was a gashing wound, the fur was burned – Henry had sliced at it to defend Thanatos when Longclaw had grabbed his leg. Further, he had managed to leave a burn mark across his face, a direct hit, that had made the big rat cry in pain.

Overall, the battle was very equal. Henry had his echolocation and the burning sword, to keep his opponent at a distance, and there was Thanatos, with his ability to fly. Longclaw himself was a versed fighter, apparently used to battling multiple opponents at once.

A memory of a similar fight – against a single rat, on foot – flashed in his mind, and for a second he saw Goldfang again, the triumph he had felt when he had managed to defeat her, and the anxiety that battle had brought. He had never fought a rat on his own before. Now, after so many victories in the arena and the sparring with Kismet, the thought not even frightened him anymore. How far he had come, Henry thought, and smirked.

In fact, the battle seemed to be way too equal for Longclaw’s taste. Henry had hoped he would have enough respect for the rules of his own arena to fight fairly, but then again – it was Longclaw, so he wasn’t really surprised to find that wasn’t the case.

Henry was so focused on the battle that he made the mistake to not notice the rat that had approached from the entrance of the arena. Longclaw slowly retreated in her direction, and before Henry noticed, he had taken the item she held out to him – and emptied it over his head.

The sensation of cold water to his face startled him for a second, and hadn’t Thanatos seen what was going on and dove down, to dig his claws into Longclaw’s outstretched paw, Henry would have surely been a goner.

The rat cried in pain and the exiled prince gained a second to realize what had happened – unbelievingly he stared at the still smoking sword in his hand – the rat had extinguished the fire.

But Thanatos couldn’t keep Longclaw at bay for long, and when he leaped at Henry again, the exiled prince raised the sword to block his attack, but the huge gnawer simply caught the blade in his claw. His eyes stared down at Henry triumphantly when he tightened his grip – until the metal blade shattered into pieces in his grasp.

For a second, Henry stared at the handle he was still holding in his hand, unbelievingly, all that had remained of his sword was a jagged piece of steel, shorter than even Mys.

In the last second, he dodged the gnawer’s talons and rolled off to the side, still trying to comprehend Longclaw had just destroyed his sword, the one piece of equipment he still had from before his exile. But the battle left him no time to dwell on it.

Henry knew he needed to fight on, he needed a new weapon. He had already extended his hand to the handle of Charos when he suddenly perceived something in his back. He was barely able to stop, before running directly into the blade the rat, that had given Longclaw the water bucket earlier, held to his back.

“Oh no, no, no... Silverchild, you leave that sword exactly where it is”, the almost pleasant voice rang in his ears and Henry immediately knew the battle was over.

The audience had apparently realized the challenger was defeated too. Their cheers for their leader were deafening.

Longclaw now approached, his smug grin was almost unbearable. When Thanatos landed closeby, Tonguetwist only pressed the blade – Henry’s own old dagger – into his bond’s back harder, chirping “If you so much as attempt to take another step closer, flier, he will die.”

That put Thanatos out of action, he would never risk the life of his bond. Not even if it meant the death of Longclaw.

Henry’s mind was reeling, he refused to die like this, to this rat, the very same one that had already killed him in the eyes of his friends and family. She might have taken that from him, but he refused to give her the satisfaction of taking his life too. Besides, he wasn’t ready to die regardless. Henry saw Luxa’s hopeful face, he saw Teslas, Curie, Kismet... he was yet to see them all again. Then he threw a glance at Thanatos – all their plans came to mind, the unfinished saddle he hadn’t properly seen in action yet, crossing the waterway, going on new adventures...

No, Henry knew for sure he was not ready to die. And he would not – he had no plans to.

He tightened his grip on the handle with the broken remains of his sword. What would Kismet do, rang in his ears, like always in situations like this, ever since he had trained with her.

“Oh Silverchild, this is a fine mess you have gotten yourself into”, Tonguetwist snarled. “You are surrounded, with a knife to your back. If I were you, I’d give up!”

_ If I were you, I’d give up! _ He suddenly heard the words in Luxa’s overjoyed voice, when she had managed to corner him in a pretend-fight, back when they had been just children. Then, Henry smirked.

He raised an eyebrow condescendingly, turning his head in Tonguetwist’s direction – “If you were me, I’d be ugly!”

It worked. For a split second, a confused and insulted expression appeared on her face, she lowered the dagger a little – and in that moment, Henry raised his hand and rammed what had remained of his sword with all his strength into her neck.

She sounded a surprised shriek, that soon turned into a gurgling noise, as blood started dripping from her mouth. Henry stared her in the almost unnervingly blue eyes, he found he was relishing the unbelieving expression in them. She had truly thought herself invincible, he thought.

“Small tip, distractions can be deadly, as someone much smarter than you once told me. But I guess you learned that the hard way”, he smirked. “I’ll make sure to greet your daughter, you told me so much about, if I ever meet her, from you!”

With his words, the life faded from her eyes and her body fell to the ground. She was dead.

Only when she was lying motionlessly at his feet, Henry realized the arena was dead-silent. Then, a sharp, pained cry pierced the silence, the exiled prince barely had the time to turn around when Longclaw leaped at him, naked fury and hatred in his eyes.

He wouldn’t have been fast enough to dodge, hadn’t Thanatos rammed the gnawer in the side, throwing him off course. “YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS!”, Longclaw screamed, baring his teeth.

Henry’s hand reached up for Charos and this time no silver rat hindered him from drawing it. He leaped to the side to dodge another incoming attack and saw Thanatos diving for him. He recognized the maneuver from their training with Kismet and anticipated the flier lifting him off the floor, by the straps of the sheaths of the swords.

They unanimously sounded a shrieking battle cry. Thanatos gained altitude, flew a loop and sped up, before tossing Henry directly at Longclaw. The rat was unfocused now, having witnessed the death of who the exiled prince presumed had been his lover, or at least a close familiar, and the two managed to catch him by surprise.

When Henry flew at him, Charos outstretched, he had no time to dodge. The black blade tore a gash right across his torso, forming almost a perfect “x” with the old scar, Thanatos had made, all those years ago.

Henry had to let go of Charos to roll off, but when he stood again and picked the blade back up, he saw Longclaw was a goner. The gash was so deep Henry saw some of his guts spill out. He staggered a few steps towards the exiled prince and Thanatos, who had landed behind him and then collapsed on the floor, his claw still reaching for them. The look that froze on his face when he died, was not far from Tonguetwist’s last expression, a mix of unbelieving and hatred.

But that hatred was forever extinguished now, together with the life in his body, like it should have been a long time ago already.

The rats around them were dead silent for a moment, most likely unable to believe their leader was actually dead. But Henry knew they would attack soon, attempting to avenge him.

He looked at Thanatos, they needed to get out of here. His bond understood and when Henry started running and leaped up, legs spread, he caught him, only seconds before the first furious rat had caught up to them. It screeched in frustration and Thanatos quickly gained altitude to escape their claws for good.

“Where too?”, he asked, and at first, Henry glanced around, looking for a way out of the giant cave, but then he remembered something – “Dalia”, he muttered, “she is still here somewhere.”

Thanatos understood. He dodged the rats and flew a circle, still unsure where to go though.

“The prison”, Henry said on a hunch. He could honestly not imagine a scenario in which she hadn’t ended up in prison as well, no matter if they had discovered she had freed the bats or not.

Thanatos dove into the tunnel that led to the cave with the prison, immediately followed by their pursuers. This would be close. “You ready?”, Henry asked, patting his head encouragingly, his flier nodded. “It’s whatever. Nothing against flinging you at Longclaw.” Henry just chuckled.

They reached the prison hole a little ahead of the rats only to see new guards had been posted – for a new prisoner.

“You were right”, Thanatos called, as they saw a lone figure sitting in the pit, arms wrapped around herself. When she noticed the commotion, she raised her head, and Thanatos just about managed to grab her arm before gaining altitude again.

Dalia shrieked and the flier had an even harder time dodging the rats who were still after him, with the additional weight, especially in the narrow tunnel, but eventually, they reached the exit and soon soared high in the air, maybe a hundred feet above their pursuers.

Henry glanced down and saw the rats break into panic, they were visibly disoriented without their leader, without a goal or purpose.

It is over, he finally thought, glancing at the broken handle of the sword he was still firmly gripping.

It is finally over.


	25. Mercy

Thanatos didn’t fly far, not with Dalia still dangling from his claw the way she was. He entered a tunnel, maybe a hundred feet up, that led away from the arena, and when they reached the first cave he simply dropped her on the floor before landing himself.

Henry remembered how the flier had dropped him in a similar manner, back when they had first met and he had carried him away from the bottom of the cliff.

She shrieked and when Henry mounted down to approach her, he realized they were standing in complete darkness. He could perceive his surroundings well, but Dalia was probably scared out of her mind.

When the torch he had lit finally illuminated the cave, he could see her face for the first time. Expressions weren’t really what he focused on when he used sounds to see.

She was staring at him with widened eyes, fear and uncertainty were written all over her face. Henry saw the purple bags under her eyes had grown and she looked haggard, almost like a walking corpse.

When he took a step towards her, she stumbled backward, until her back hit the wall. She cried in surprise before pressing herself against it, not leaving him out of her sight.

She is scared of me, Henry realized and wasn’t entirely sure how to feel about that.

“We will not take our anger out on you if that is what you fear”, Thanatos suddenly spoke, approaching her from the other side. Her head jolted in his direction, then back to Henry.

The exiled prince saw Dalia was shaking. “You... why did you... save me?” Her voice sounded quiet and meekly.

He exchanged a glance with Thanatos and hesitated. Why... did he save her? Truthfully, Henry didn’t really know himself. There was just something about this entire situation, that... resonated with him. He knew he wasn’t sympathizing with her or thought she deserved mercy. But then, why did he save her?

Suddenly he knew. “Because... I want to know the reason.”

Dalia widened her eyes even more at first, before angrily squinting them again. “Why would you care?”

“I cared enough to risk my life by saving you”, he shot back.

She was silent for a moment. “That is... exactly what I don’t understand. Longclaw told me –”

“Longclaw is dead”, Henry simply stated, “and so is, who I presume was your best friend, Tonguetwist.”

Dalia gasped and stared at him in shock again. “W... what? How...?”

“We killed them. That’s how”, Thanatos chuckled a little, “oddly enough it was thanks to you that we could. Because you freed us.”

Henry looked back at her and saw she was clenching her fist. “Why did you do that? What was the plan?”, he shot at her, suddenly furious again.

Dalia swallowed and looked to the floor. “There was no plan. I just...”, Henry noticed tears had risen in her eyes. She sunk to the floor until she was sitting in the same position in which they had found her in the pit, legs pulled to her chest, not looking at them.

“You realized they had lied.” It wasn’t a question Henry asked, it was a statement. “You realized whatever they had promised you was false and that they would kill you anyway. That you had traded your loyalty for nothing. And you had nothing to lose.”

She looked up at him, Henry saw the tearstains on her cheeks. “You... I... I wanted to...”

“Why?”, Henry now kneeled before her, torch in hand, firmly holding her gaze. “I need to know... why. Everyone has a reason. You do too. What is it? What is your story?”, quieter he added, “I’m most likely the only one who will listen to it anyway. Or do you think any of them will care, back in civilization?”

She sobbed, angrily wiping away her tears. “Civilization? How would I even get back there?”, she hesitated, “What reason do you have to take me there? You are an outcast, you have no allegiance to the Fount or the humans in general, do you?”, she laughed dryly, staring at him with bitter resolve, “you only went on this quest to kill Longclaw. Don’t... ACT like you’re ANY BETTER THAN ME!”

Her words struck a nerve, Henry attempted to keep his collected face up, he cared little for her noticing her words had phased him. Because in truth... she wasn’t wrong. What... right did he... HE, out of all people, have, to judge her or decide her fate?

“I just want to know why, that’s all”, his voice was cold now and he averted his gaze, “Why would you... throw away everything you have like this? What did they offer you to make it seem worth it?”

To his surprise, Dalia snorted. “Throw away everything I have? That’s a good question and all, but it kind of becomes pointless when you consider I never... had anything to throw away.”

Henry turned in her direction. “You... you must have had something... a family at least?”

Dalia scoffed but averted her eyes. “The only true family I have is my brother whom I had to leave with a distant relative when I left Regalia to...”, she bit her lip and suddenly looked at him again. Henry had barely ever seen so much bitterness in someone’s eyes before.

“Do you think I... LIKE working for them? Do you think it is FUN to babysit a snotty, spoiled BRAT almost constantly, while being treated like SHIT by everyone and getting paid so little you have to send it all back to Regalia for your brother, to buy him an education so that he can have a better life than yourself?”

Her voice got louder and louder the more she talked – “I have been working my ass off every day for those people for YEARS, but do they ever show any sort of appreciation for what I am doing? No – all they do is nag, blame me when the brat gets in trouble, and load even more work on me! I have HAD it with being treated like this, all I wanted was enough money to be able to finally leave them and afford a better life for me and Ian – I haven’t even seen him more than a couple times over the five years I have worked at the Fount – is THIS THE STORY YOU WANTED TO HEAR?”

She was nearly screaming by the end of it, Henry saw the tears streaming out of her eyes and her fists were angrily clenched. “I hate my life... every second of it. The only reason I haven’t ended it yet is Ian...”

Henry was frozen in place, staring at her in shock. He had expected something entirely different. Something similar to his own story, but this... He knew Stellovet was usually not easy to be around, let alone responsible for, but he hadn’t even considered Dalia could feel mistreated.

His thoughts inadvertently went back to when he himself still had had servants. He had not wasted a single thought on whether they liked their work or what consequences his own behavior had had for them.

It was a story like he had never heard before, and yet it was most likely not just Dalia’s, but that of many.

“And Tonguetwist approached you... and offered you a way out?”, his voice was hushed.

Dalia did not look at him. “We met during one of mine and Stellovet’s trips to the lake. She behaved especially badly that day, she played a prank on me at the end of which I was subtracted an entire month’s wage. I didn’t... want to talk to a rat at first, but...”

“... But she talked her way into your heart, twisted your thoughts and viewpoints until she had almost complete control over you. Let me guess – something along the lines of “you are better than this” and “you deserve much more than life gives you” – over “helping us kidnap Stellovet will feel satisfying after all she had done to you” to “help us lure the future queen into a trap and we will reward you with enough money to buy yourself the life you and your brother deserve”.”

Dalia stared at him in shock, most likely at how accurate his guesses had been. “You...”, suddenly her eyes widened, “you... know her, don’t you?”

Henry sighed. “We were... old... acquaintances”, he gritted his teeth, “She needed to finally die before she could ruin any more lives.”

Dalia remained silent for a moment, before starting to nervously knot her hands. “You... you were... like me...”

Henry averted his eyes. “Oh no. I was not like you. Not even remotely.”

Her look was questioning, and he continued – “You said it yourself, you did it because you had nothing to lose. I... I risked and lost... everything.”

It was hard to remain calm at how pointless his own reason compared to hers had been. She was not so much older than him, yet the things she had had to worry about and deal with, Henry had never had the reason to bother with. He felt like a child just talking to her.

“But... if you did this because the rats promised you money to support your family, I still don’t understand why you... freed us in the end”, Thanatos suddenly spoke and Dalia bit her lip.

“You realized they were not planning to keep their word”, Henry repeated what he had assumed earlier. He chuckled dryly – “Never trust a rat. I learned that the hard way... and I guess so did you.”

“Except for Ripred”, Thanatos interrupted and Henry rolled his eyes. “Of course.”

“... and Kismet”, the flier continued, “and –”, the exiled prince shushed him, slightly annoyed – “Okay, okay I get it, some rats can be trusted, but THAT’S NOT THE POINT NOW.”

Dalia remained silent, only after a few quiet moments she finally asked – “So... what are you planning to do with me now...?”

Henry and Thanatos exchanged glances. “There are really only two options”, the exiled prince pondered, “we can take you back to the Fount to receive your just sentence – or we can leave you here.”

“So I die in any case”, her voice was dry and almost apathetic, like she had already accepted her fate. “Executed in Regalia or die here, by whatever means.”

Henry put his hands to his hips. “That is the fate of traitors. Execution... or exile.”

Around two hours had passed when Henry, Dalia, and Thanatos were sitting at the lake, eating fish. The exiled prince was mindlessly twirling around his old dagger that he had decided to go and fetch from Longclaw’s camp. And they had not just found the dagger – looting the place had turned out extremely profitable, the rats had stored tons of goods.

And then there had been Gorger’s... Luxa’s father’s... old crown. Apparently, Longclaw had not just found Henry’s dagger with the king, the human crown he had also taken, presumably already in preparation for crowning himself king someday. It was now safely stored in his backpack, Henry had decided it would be for the best to take it back to the Fount and give it to Luxa... where it belonged.

The only thing he and Thanatos were still unsure about was whether to take Dalia with them or not. She had not expressed a preference so far, and yet Henry had a feeling she did not like the thought of being sentenced to death by the very people she despised so much.

Henry was in the process of dissecting a fish with Mys when Dalia finally asked for the dagger. He had seen her staring at it during the quest, but she had never made a remark about it.

“Is... that the tooth of a gnawer?”, she scooted a little closer, inspecting Mys more thoroughly.

Henry smiled a little. “Not just any gnawer too. This –”, he narrowed his eyes, tracing the curve of the blade with a finger, his voice dripping with spite, “is the tooth I hacked off the rotting carcass of the rat that had tried to drag me with him over the edge of a cliff to death after I had tried everything in my power to help him. It’s the tooth of king Gorger.”

Dalia’s eyes widened in shock. “You... you... so you were...”

“... a traitor? We already knew that, didn’t we?”

Suddenly it crossed Henry’s mind it might have not been the smartest idea to tell her that. What if they ended up taking her back and she told everyone? He would never be able to show his face to them again.

A minute of silence went by, in which the only sound was the quiet crackling of the fire.

“You... you fell off a cliff... with king Gorger?”, Dalia’s voice was hushed and Henry suddenly wondered if he had told her too much.

“But the only one who...”, she paused for a second and when Henry looked at her, her eyes were big and round. “... You are... but, that is impossible... you have to be... Prince... Henry...!” 

He winced at the name and Thanatos’ head jolted up from where he had lied and rested. “How...?”, but she didn’t let the flier finish. Her entire face looked like she could almost not believe her own words, yet she continued talking – “Everyone knows the story, he... you... fell off a cliff with king Gorger, but...”

Suddenly her eyes expressed confusion, “but... no... that is impossible, there was never any mention of prince Henry being a...”, she stared at him, wide-eyed. “You... are you...?”

Henry exchanged a glance with Thanatos. There was really no use denying it anymore. “I know, I do not look very royal at the moment, after nearly one and a half years in exile, but your memory served you well.” Then he hesitated, “Though, what do you mean by... “there was never any mention of prince Henry being a...” – a what?”

“A traitor”, she mumbled, still visibly struggling to believe he was who he was.

“What?”, Henry’s head jolted in her direction. “What do you mean, there was never any mention... Did they not... shout it from all rooftops?” His voice was bitter, but Dalia simply shook her head.

“They said prince Henry died during the quest to fulfill the Prophecy of Gray. That he was killed by king Gorger when he dragged him off the edge of a cliff.”

A hundred thoughts reeled in his mind at once. Why hadn’t they told the people the truth? Who... even knew it? Luxa and the rest of the questers did, obviously. Vikus and Solovet? The council? Henry suddenly asked himself if Mareth knew.

Dalia snorted a little, averting her eyes. “I assume they kept it secret to not sully the reputation of the oh-so-perfect royal family. A traitor from their midst... if people knew, they would not take well to it.”

Henry was still shocked, but he also saw that she had a point. “Well, you know now”, his voice was dry. “Feel special yet?”

She didn’t respond. Instead, she stared at him intensely, Henry realized she still had trouble believing all of this. Like in a daze she mumbled – “You helped me... with my chores... during the quest.”

Henry furrowed his brows. “Yes, what about it? Gregor, Howard, and Luxa did too if I remember correctly.”

But Dalia completely ignored him. She was staring at her hands now and Henry saw she was biting her lip.

“She has most likely never been treated kindly by any royalty, exiled or not”, Thanatos’ voice suddenly spoke from behind him and Henry mustered her – “Was that also why you decided to help us in the end?”, he asked on a whim, “because we treated you well during the quest?”

Her head jolted up. “I... I thought I hated you... all of you”, Henry was almost certain she referred to royals and nobles, “but then... I kept seeing the Overlander’s kind face, hearing you telling me helping is not a big deal, and the queen... the future queen... I would have not even known it was her, had she not worn her crown.”

Henry recalled Luxa helping Dalia to make sandwiches and smiled. “Hey, listen, I know Stellovet can be a pain in the ass sometimes, but even she is not as wretched as you think.” He remembered the conversation between her and Howard, that he had heard. “She blamed herself, you know?”

Dalia furrowed her brows in disbelief, but Henry continued. “For your betrayal. Back in the prison, she cried, regretting how she had treated you. For all it’s worth, she at least learned a lesson from all this.”

“She... did?”, the young woman sounded unbelieving.

“Oh yes”, Henry threw her a short smile. Then his face grew serious and he exchanged a glance with Thanatos. “However... As you know who I am now, I guess that makes our decision easier, as to what to do with you.” Henry knew he could never let her back into civilization with this knowledge.

But Dalia clenched her fist determinately. “What... do you mean? I...”, she hesitated, “I want you to take me back.”

Both Henry’s and Thanatos’ heads jolted up. “You realize your chances of survival are bigger out here, right?”, the flier asked, but Dalia simply bit her lip. “I don’t care. I... I want to go back because I want to... I want them to hear the story you just heard. I want to... I want to see my brother one last time, I want to tell him I did it for him, and maybe he will hate me less, then. In any case, I do not want to vanish out of existence just like that, I do not want my brother to ask himself what happened to me for the rest of his life, I...”

Henry was frozen in place, his mind was reeling. She was willing to go back and face the consequences of her actions, all for her brother – and the world to know the truth. Something within him suddenly started burning with frustration and anger, how... why would she... do this?

“I can not let you go back”, his voice was cold now, “you know who I am and what I have done. It is out of the question.”

Dalia looked at him in shock. “You would... deny me that?”

Henry narrowed his eyes. “I just told you why.”

“But”, she stammered, “I... I will not tell anyone – what reason would I even have to do so? I will be executed, you said that yourself. I will not... drag you down with me out of spite!” She sounded almost desperate.

“It doesn’t matter, I can’t risk it!”, Henry called, Thanatos nudged him in the side, about to ask why he was so angry, but Dalia beat him to it. “And even IF I told them – what exactly would you lose?” Her tone was equally challenging now.

Henry hesitated and she continued on – “You would deny me to see my brother one last time because you are scared – of what exactly? It’s not like they would send the army after you if they found out you were alive! No, in fact, nothing would change for you! You could remain here, in exile, that you are apparently so accustomed to already, and nobody would bother you. So what is your point?!”

Henry stared at her, taken aback by her determination. He knew exactly what his point was – what he would lose. “Yes. And I could never see them... any of them... ever again.” His voice was dry and cold.

“So you are willing to trade my last chance to see my family... against THE LOW RISK of losing your own?” She scoffed, “Maybe I was wrong. Maybe you royals are all the same after all.”

Gregor had just finished packing for his trip back to Regalia. It was the day after they had come back, Stellovet’s parents had been overjoyed to have their daughter back, though shocked by what Dalia had done. “Oh well, at least she got what she deserved”, York had simply remarked, and then they had dropped the topic. Luxa and Gregor had exchanged glances but remained silent.

Hera and her pups had been well-received as well, they had been permitted to stay for as long as they wished, and had gladly accepted the offer.

Now Gregor and Luxa were standing in the entrance hall, together with Ares and Aurora, in the midst of saying goodbye to York, Susannah, and their children – even Stellovet. It seemed like the little adventure had left its impact on her, Gregor remembered seeing her and Luxa talk after they had arrived here. Maybe things would be better between her and all her Fount-cousins, after this, he thought and smiled.

Then, the door was suddenly flung open. “Here... Death Rider... PHUH...”, one of the guards heaved, trying to catch his breath, from most likely running all the way here from the main gates.

That moment a bat soared into the room, above his head, and Gregor saw it was Thanatos. Luxa’s face immediately lightened up, as did Stellovet’s. Gregor felt he was happy the outcast was alive as well and curiously eyed the black bat, while he flew across the room only to land directly on the huge table in the middle.

The Death Rider slid off his back – he wore a cocky grin and, Gregor blinked a few times, but no, his eyes were not deceiving him – on his head sat a big golden crown. Gregor thought he had seen the crown before, but he couldn’t say when or where.

The outcast jumped off the table and strolled over to them. “As you can all see – we are alive and well – and Longclaw is dead. So no reason to worry about him anymore.” Gregor felt relief hearing that. One enemy less was good news.

Then, the Death Rider turned to Luxa. “I have something for you”, he grabbed the crown, took it off and held it out to her. “We were looting the rats’ camp and found it. It was the crown of Gorger – and if I recall correctly, before that, it belonged to your father. It is rightfully yours now.”

Luxa stared at him with big eyes and Gregor realized where he had seen the crown before – squeezed onto one of Gorger’s ears when they had witnessed the death of the rat king.

She slowly took the crown from him, smiling a little. “Thank you. I will not forget it was you who brought it back to me. And you who slew Longclaw. We all owe you.”

The Death Rider smiled a little. “Then you will certainly not mind me calling in that favor now.” He waved at Thanatos and all eyes fell on the bat, who had gotten off the table and now took a step aside to reveal –

Every guard in the room instantly drew their swords when they saw the thin figure of Dalia step out of the shadow of Thanatos’ wing.

“And that favor is – I’d like you all to lower your swords... and hear her out.”

Henry grinned down at the silken glove he was holding, that Stellovet had given him when he had told her Longclaw had destroyed his. It was much too small for him, but she had still insisted on him keeping it. To never forget her. Who’d have thought she had it in her? And all it had taken was being kidnapped by rats, if he had only known that sooner, Henry chuckled.

At first, they had wanted to throw Dalia into the dungeon immediately to have her executed, without a trial and without giving her the chance to explain herself.

It had mostly fallen onto Henry to tell them what she had done, what had been the reason for her actions – and how she had, and was still ready to, atone for it.

It had essentially turned into something like an improvised trial, with York and Susannah as the judges, Dalia as the accused, and Henry as her advocate. He had brought her back without any hope she might live, and even his defense had been all about her being allowed to see her brother one last time and not actually bringing her sentence down – but neither he nor anyone else had foreseen how far the ordeals of imprisonment had left their marks on Stellovet.

After listening to her story and essentially everything she had already told Henry before, Stellovet had stood up. Her father had thrown her a death glare that said “sit down, it is not for you to talk now”, but she had simply ignored him.

“You truly suffered so much from what I did?”, she said, her face had been grave-serious. Dalia had only nodded and Stellovet had raised her voice again – “In that case, shouldn’t I take some of the blame for what she did on myself?”

The room had broken into confused and aggravated murmur and Henry had heard York hiss “Sit back down, you have no idea what you are doing!”, but his daughter had still not minded him any attention. She had approached Dalia instead. “I...”, she hesitated, “I wish to apologize, in that case.” Her head had hung low and Henry didn’t recall ever having seen her so humble before. It had not just been him either – at that point, the entire room had been dead-silent.

“I do not want you to die for this”, she continued, “I do not want you to die at all. If you die, I will...”, she had broken off, but Henry thought she had wanted to say she would lose her only possible girl friend. There weren’t many girls her age around to talk to, and he assumed Stellovet had always secretly viewed Dalia as a friend. The fact that she had mistreated her only meant that she hadn’t known how to treat a friend previously, not that she disliked her.

Dalia’s eyes had been wide and shocked, and nobody had dared protest when Stellovet had addressed her directly. “If I promise to... try and behave better from now on, would you... would you like to stay here? I am sure we can do something for your brother too...”

The young woman hadn’t had any words, she just nodded.

Then, York raised his voice finally – “This is absurd, she is a traitor, why would we keep her here? She needs to be executed.”

“Because if she hadn’t freed the fliers, I WOULD BE DEAD NOW. And so would LUXA, GREGOR, AND HOWARD!”, Stellovet screamed. Even her father had been taken aback enough by her tone to remain silent for a moment.

“I want HER TO LIVE!”, Stellovet called, putting her hands to her hips. “I want her to live – to be reunited with her brother – and to stay here! If we sentence her to death now, we would condemn her brother to death as well, after all.”

It had taken almost the entire day but in the end, Stellovet had at least partially gotten her wish. Dalia hadn’t been pardoned, but she had been sentenced to work for Stellovet and the family at the Fount for the rest of her life – free of charge. It was forbidden for her to leave the estate without guards, but she had been allowed to invite her brother to live with them and be cared for as well. 

Henry suspected York and Susannah had given in out of love for their daughter and Stellovet had been overjoyed. Henry had seen Howard’s sister take her hands, after the trial had been over, and firmly reassure her things would change from now on. She would never suffer from mistreatment or Stellovet’s own behavior ever again.

Dalia had glanced at Henry, in a moment when nobody had paid attention, and whispered “thank you... your secret is safe with me for eternity, I promise. You have given me my family back, and I will not take yours from you.”

Now, maybe half a day after the trial was over and they had left the fount, he and Thanatos were resting in a cave near the Firelands. Henry threw a glance at his bond, who was eyeing him with half-closed, amber eyes.

“She... went back. She went back voluntarily and risked death just to tell her story, to assure her loved ones she wasn’t dead.”

As proud as he had been of himself for confronting his past by helping his friends and family as the Death Rider, Henry realized he was still scared of them finding out who he was. And Dalia had... not even hesitated to go back, admit and atone for her mistakes.

He twisted Stellovet’s glove in his hand. Was that why he had been so unwilling to take her back with him? Was he... jealous of her?

“She placed her life in their hands... and reaped the gain.” Thanatos’ voice sounded and Henry turned to him. Those words had sounded awfully familiar. “Was that... from the Prophecy of the Death Rider?”

His bond chuckled. “Who can really tell? If there is hope for her, maybe there is...”, but Henry interrupted him immediately. He refused to even think of such a thing, out of fear it would turn out to be a false hope.

“Do not cite the prophecy on me, you hear!”, he snarled, before continuing in a much more cheerful tone – “You know what, Death, I think I had enough of humans for a while.”

His bond raised a symbolic eyebrow. Henry sighed. Way too many images of Luxa and the others clustered his thoughts, visions, scenarios of them finding out, of their reaction, of his own fate afterward. He needed a break to declutter his mind.

“I... I am itching for an adventure, somewhere...”, he pondered, “you know, explore something new – just, go somewhere where nobody knows me, the old me, somewhere where I don’t have to pretend constantly, where I don’t have to watch my every word and action to not accidentally give myself away. I am tired, Death... tired of... pretending I still belong with them.”

Henry remembered a time when he had longed for their presence, their attention, and love. Now he was so agitated he was tempted to throw Stellovet’s glove into the fire.

His bond leaped down from the ledge where he had been hanging and eyed Henry curiously. Many questions burned in his eyes, concerns, objections – but all he said was – “And where would this “new land” be?”

Henry grinned. “Oh, I don’t know – maybe south of the rat’s land, or north of Regalia, west of the Dead Land – or east of the jungle and the citadel. Have you ever been to any of those places?”

Thanatos grinned. “Beyond the maps? No – nobody goes beyond the maps. Nobody sane, that is.”

“Well, then it seems like the perfect place for us”, was all Henry said, and they exchanged a glance. No words needed.


	26. Epilogue

“Are you finally done? Geez, if getting into this thing will always take this long, maybe making it wasn’t worth it after all.” Thanatos’ voice sounded slightly annoyed and Henry tried to kick him, but couldn’t.  
“Yep, I have now successfully achieved not being able to move my legs anymore. You proud of me?” Thanatos just laughed.  
The exiled prince inspected every single one of the straps, that tied him firmly to the saddle contraption around the flier’s neck.  
After they had decided to leave for the uncharted lands, a few weeks ago, they had agreed to first go back to the nibbler colony and finally finish the saddle design, as well as tell everyone they would be gone for a while. With a lot of help from Teslas and many, many failed attempts later, Henry was now finally satisfied with it.  
He eyed the new leather gear he had made for his legs, specifically to keep him in place while flying. They looked like the front halves of boots he could wear over his normal footwear. They were tied to straps around his upper legs in the front and in the back so that he could not move his legs at all, that were firmly fixated in a fairly comfortable position, where the knee was slightly bent.  
Henry pulled at the straps one last time to make sure they were as tight as possible.  
The belts around his upper legs were firmly connected to the saddle itself and would hold him on Thanatos’ back, together with the straps that tied the belt around his waist to the saddle.  
Henry knew his bond was right, it took forever to get into the gear, but then again, it worked like a charm – at last. The fact that his legs were fixated in place distributed his own weight better, which made the whole thing more comfortable for both flier and rider, and like this, it was utterly impossible to fall, or be otherwise torn off Thanatos’ back.  
Henry grinned when he thought of how he had claimed he didn’t need anything to hold himself on the flier’s back, even when upside down, when they had conducted the very first test.  
“Right, you packed everything too? It’s not like we’ll be coming back tomorrow”, Thanatos tilted his head at Henry on his back and threw him an “I know you’ll nag later because you ended up forgetting SOMETHING”-glance, but the exiled prince dismissively waved his hand. “What is there to forget? It’s not like I own much more than the contents of my backpack.”  
His hand almost automatically reached to count his weapons – there was Charos with the long, dual-handed handle, right next to it was his original sword. Henry had brought Teslas what had remained of it and asked the nibbler to reforge it, which he had gladly done.  
Turned out he had wanted to do that anyway at some point, as he had apparently found a way to apply the ignifer during the forging-process, making it a firm part of the sword’s components. Henry had stared at him with big, unbelieving eyes when Teslas had taken the freshly reforged sword, grated a firestone against it, and it had lit up instantly.  
No more wasting time applying any sort of substance, the nibbler had grinned, and Henry had grinned back.  
In accordance with that, carrying ignifer had become nearly pointless – he still had a small dosage of it, just in case, safely stored in his waterproof container – and Henry had started referring to the sword itself as “the Igniter” since it literally ignited on fire. It wasn’t an official name, not yet at least, but a nice way to set it apart from all his other weapons when talking about them.  
And now that the blade was smooth and new again and glistened in many colors when you held it close to a light source – from whatever Teslas had put into it – it was finally able to compete with all his other blades again.  
Then, his hand moved down to the back of his hip and gripped the handle of Mys, which was at its usual spot. And finally, down to his right leg where he had fastened his old dagger, that he had taken from Tonguetwist.  
All there.  
His backpack with all his other belongings he was wearing, and what hadn’t fit into it was safely stored in Thanatos’ – well, he guessed he could call them that now – saddlebags.  
“Let’s go”, he called, a grin spreading on his face. He glanced over the edge of the cliff the flier was cowering over, beneath it the foaming waves of the waterway. They were almost at the exact same spot where they had started their first journey over the waterway from.  
Thanatos leaped in the air, reeling around a little before he finally catching a good current that propelled him forward and carried him almost on its own accord so that he was able to conserve some energy. He would need all of it, after all, during the next what Henry had estimated would be around fifty hours.

“So we are actually doing this”, the flier chuckled, maybe ten minutes in. Henry grinned. “Did you think I would forget? You promised me we’ll one day cross the waterway – and we ARE crossing the waterway. You are not getting yourself out of that one.”  
“Won’t you die of boredom though?”, the flier mocked, but Henry simply shrugged, “Not this time. This time, I have the saddle to occupy myself with. I hope you are up for some experimenting!”  
Thanatos sighed, presumably contemplating how much of his precious energy would have to be wasted on Henry’s experiments, but the exiled prince knew he wanted to see the thing in action as well.  
He glanced ahead, letting his imagination run wild with what may lie beyond the vast ocean, behind what humans had explored of the Underland so far – beyond, above, below. Those were the things he wanted to occupy his mind with now, not having to bother with keeping up a silly cover or pretending to not be who he was – Henry of... Regalia?  
Henry of the Dead Land, he thought, the thought made him chuckle. Should he add that to his growing list of titles?  
It was almost crazy to think about how much had changed in what now were one and a half years of exile – more or less. He knew he wasn’t who he had been before all this happened anymore, yet he knew he liked who he was now. He was proud of and enjoyed the things he had learned, the knowledge he was capable of taking care of himself – it gave him a feeling of almost limitless power.  
He knew he should probably not assume he was invincible, like Kismet had warned, but to hell with it – he was an incredibly powerful warrior now, and he liked dwelling on it, it was good for his confidence.  
Henry thought back to how powerless and weak he had felt after losing his eye and grinned when he realized he had been right – he had climbed out of that rock bottom like he had out of the first one.  
Come at me – he wanted to scream into the world, come at... us. Thanatos and he... they could take it all. Together. And only... together. As many new and amazing things as he had learned so far, some of those lessons had been painful... and had almost broken him. Almost.  
Together, he thought. Henry had noticed usually, whenever he said he had done or still wanted to do something, he meant himself and Thanatos. He found it hard to even think of them as separate entities anymore.  
It was almost ironic, he thought, considering I was so close to losing him not even that long ago. They had experienced, in the worst imaginable way, how life without each other would be, and it had strengthened their bond, in a way like nothing else could have.  
Henry smiled – it was nice knowing he was not alone. And that he would never be again. Especially considering he was literally tied to Thanatos’ back at the moment.  
He tugged at the belts of the saddle one last time, then, without warning, pulled the rotation lever. This time he had enough control to let go of it immediately, and the saddle snapped into position in a ninety-degree-sideways-angle. Thanatos, startled by the shift in weight, almost lost control of his flight, hissing “hey, you could maybe warn me next time!”, but Henry only laughed. He was sitting firmly in the saddle, even though he was now on Thanatos’ left side – the footgear worked fantastically.  
“Eh, this is weird... having you on the side is throwing off my balance”, the flier complained and Henry noticed he was struggling to keep himself straight in the air.  
He pulled the lever again and the saddle rotated another ninety degrees, he was now sitting upside down. Again, not even the slightest budging from the gear – he was not falling, no matter if he held on or not.  
“Sideways only for short amounts of time then”, Henry called, grinning from ear to ear. I am the first human to sit on a flier upside-down, he thought and in his mind, he started imagining what kinds of stunts they could pull with this equipment now. Until Thanatos suddenly lost height.  
The exiled prince shrieked in shock when the flier sunk so low Henry’s head dipped into the water. Snorting and coughing he managed to pull himself up into the normal position and hissed “the hell did you do that for!”, at Thanatos, but the flier just laughed. “I could have warned you, I guess. But... you didn’t warn me either when you first activated it.”  
Henry wanted to be mad, he really did – his hair was soaking now and plastered across his face, he wiped it away angrily. But then again – it’s not like he wouldn’t have done the same, were he the flier.  
“This is going to take some practice”, Henry pondered, beginning to rotate again. He made a full circle this time, and Thanatos nodded. “It is weird for me too, having your weight in all sorts of places. But there is no denying this will make us considerably stronger and especially unpredictable in battle, once we master it.”  
“Well, we have fifty hours now. Let’s get a head start”, Henry laughed. He stopped rotating while sitting upside down again, stretched his hand out and touched the water.  
At this very moment, Henry felt the full sensation of freedom, one of his favorite things about exile. Still upside down, he stared out into the open and knew there were no limits, no boundaries, no rules, and no restraints that could ever hold him – them.  
“Let the vacation begin!”, he screamed, and ignored Thanatos’ “since when is a trip to the uncharted lands a VACATION?”  
Because that was exactly what it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for finishing part 2 as well! Now please treat yourself to the outro-video I made, it contains information on the SEQUEL and shares CONCEPT ART I made for this story.
> 
> I apologize for the poor quality on some of the pictures, my slideshow maker screwed that up.  
> https://youtu.be/xukACxWglbo


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